Highland cagers rally late, fall to Alton Marquette in home opener
On paper, the boys basketball match-up between Highland and Alton Marquette had the potential to be a run and gun track meet throughout.
A hard-working, young Highland squad made sure that didn’t happen. Despite falling behind by double digits late in the first half, and again in the second half, the Bulldogs got as close as three points in the final minute before running out of gas.
Marquette senior guard Spencer Cox knocked down four free throws in the final 19 seconds to give the Explorers a hard-fought 50-43 nonconference win in the Bulldogs home opener Tuesday, Dec. 3.
Bulldogs coach Deryl Cunningham noted playing against an experienced club such as Marquette with a roster that sports five freshmen and two sophomores and staying within two possessions at the end was a major plus for the Bulldogs (1-4).
“The kids are working really hard and they’re learning the difference between playing and knowing how to win,” Cunningham said. “They don’t know how to win yet, but they’re learning at a rapid pace.”
Alton Marquette (4-1), using its uptempo transition offense, raced to an 8-2 lead and pushed the advantage to 14-6 late in the quarter on an Iggy McGee bucket.
Junior guard Evan Peterson, who led the Bulldogs with 11 points, cut the Explorers lead to 18-14 with 2:10 left in the first half, but Marquette senior swingman Brett Terry answered with a 3-pointer to kickstart a 9-2 run, giving the Explorers a 27-16 advantage at the intermission.
“It was the same as the last game (Breese Central) before the half ended where those turnovers really hurt us,” Cunningham said. “I just told the guys instead of having an 11-2 run, it’s got to be like a 6-0 run, and once they learn to do that, hopefully, we’re gonna turn the corner at some point.”
A 7-0 run keyed by a Terry steal and slam and a Cortez Harris bucket pushed the Explorers lead to 34-16 just 2:02 into the third quarter.
HHS made a late charge in the final minute of the fourth quarter as junior guard Chad Barker came off the bench and drilled a three-ball to cut the lead to 46-41 and then senior guard Brylee Portell knocked down two foul shots to trim the margin to just 46-43 with 33.8 seconds to go.
“I told the guys before the game if you take away their transition baskets, if you rebound, and if you can take care of the ball, you’ll be surprised where you’re at. And once we did it, it became a fun game,” Cunningham said.
Highland’s late run ended there, as Cox closed it out with four free-throws to allow the Explorers to escape with the victory.
“When we didn’t (take care of the ball) they took advantage of it about every single time,” Cunningham said. “When you only have two weeks at (the start of the season) for practice, that’s just not enough time, we need more time on the practice court, so we’re learning on the fly and the guys are battling hard.”
Portell and Jake Brauns each finished the night with 9 points. Terry scored a game-high 15 points. Marquette was led by three players scoring in doubles figures.
What’s next for both teams
Both squads are set to resume action Friday, Dec. 6, at home, as Highland hosts Chatham Glenwood at 6 p.m. and Alton Marquette entertains Nokomis at 7:15 p.m.
This story was originally published December 4, 2019 at 12:01 PM.