Lady Bulldogs basketball team stays close, falls late in Highland Optimist Shootout
For the better part of 27 1/2 minutes, the Highland Lady Bulldogs did everything they needed to do to knock off the highly-ranked Freeburg Midgets.
Everything except finishing the job at the end.
Despite holding Freeburg to less than 25 points in the first half and under 40 points for the game, Highland’s struggling offense cost the team late as the Lady Bulldogs dropped a 36-32 decision to the Midgets in the opening game of the 30th annual Highland Optimist Shootout at Highland Highland High School on Saturday, Jan. 8.
“We ran great offense and the girls did a nice job and unfortunately we just didn’t make (enough shots). With three or four minutes left we got a couple of great looks from the perimeter but we were 1-for-18 from the 3-point line, so it’s tough to win when you can’t make shots and that’s just what we’re going through (right now),” Highland coach Clint Hamilton said.
Due in part to the 8:30 a.m. start, both teams struggled to get good shots and score in the first quarter as Freeburg led just 9-8 after eight minutes.
Meanwhile, Highland held the Midgets in check in the second quarter with a superb man-to-man defensive effort that had the teams tied 12-12 at the end of the first half.
“We had our chances for sure and we played the game just like we wanted to and defensively I thought we were awesome,” Hamilton said. “They did a really good job of keeping the ball in the middle and we outrebounded them by like 16.”
Highland (5-16) got its biggest lead midway through the third quarter when Grace Willke dropped in a layup and Abby Huelsmann scored off a drive to make it 18-14.
Wilke paced HHS with 15 points, hitting 4-of-10 from the floor and knocking down 7-of-7 from the free-throw line. Huelsmann added 11 points.
“That’s what we need, “Hamilton said. “We need at least two or three kids to get double figures. We got two today and we’ve just got to get that third one to help us out.”
Down just 29-28 with 4:30 left, the Lady Bulldogs had several chances to pull ahead and finish strong but their offense disappeared due to poor possessions and tough defense from the Midgets.
‘You get to see a lot of good basketball’
Freeburg outscored HHS 6-4 down the stretch as Bella Borja and Natalie Peterson each canned a pair of free throws in the final 1 1/2 minutes to salt away the win.
“I keep telling the girls if we can get to 40 points we’re dangerous but it’s hard for us to get to 40,” Hamilton said.
Despite the loss, Hamilton was happy his team competed in the shootout after COVID-19 canceled last year’s event.
“I’m excited about it and we’ll be here all day and it’s a big day for us and the community. You get to see a lot of good basketball,” Hamilton said.
Peterson led Freeburg (17-3) with a game-high 19 points.
This story was originally published January 7, 2022 at 7:00 PM.