Highland boys cagers struggle with offense, fall to Alton Marquette in tourney semis
The Highland basketball team had Alton Marquette lulled into the perfect situation Friday, Jan. 21, at Okawville High School.
However, the Bulldogs had trouble at inopportune times scoring and, in the end, it cost them dearly.
Down three points in the final 20 seconds, HHS worked the ball for a final shot, but Trey Koishor’s 3-point attempt with three seconds left bounced long and the Bulldogs dropped a 34-31 decision to Alton Marquette in the semifinals of the Okawville Tournament.
Highland, which is now 9-13 following a 61-46 loss to Gibault in the third place game, beat the Explorers 47-44 on Nov. 30 but this time the Bulldogs struggled to knock down shots as they scored just four points in the second and fourth quarters.
“I thought we had some good, clean open looks and you hope to knock those down. I thought the guys played hard and they tried,” said Highland coach Deryl Cunnigham. “I was disappointed with the outcome. I told the team you can run all the plays you want to but good teams — everybody knows the plays — so I told the guys it doesn’t matter what you run but how you run it and that’s kind of the key.”’
In the opening quarter, both teams scuffled on offense, with Alton Marquette managing to grab a 12-9 lead after eight minutes.
Neither team heated up in the second quarter as the defenses continued to control the game with the Explorers taking an 18-13 lead into intermission.
“I was hoping we’d pound the offensive boards more, but I don’t think we did,” Cunningham said. “We’re not getting a ton (of points) off post-ups so it’s tough.”
HHS began to gain some momentum with just over five minutes left in the third quarter when Koishor converted a three-point play and sank a pair of free throws, and Jake Ottensmeier drained a pair of foul shots to key a 7-3 run, pushing the Bulldogs ahead 22-18.
Alton Marquette regrouped, however, and finished the quarter on an 11-5 run for a 29-27 advantage.
HHS trailed by three with just over four minutes left thanks to an Ottensmeier bucket off a backcourt steal by Cade Altadonna.
Both teams gave away possessions in the last four minutes and then with 19.6 seconds left, HHS had one more chance to extend the game into overtime.
‘We’re close and we’re learning’
That opportunity vanished with three seconds left as Koishor’s trey attempt bounced long and the Explorers grabbed the rebound to run out the clock.
“We’ve got to keep fighting and not put our heads down,” Cunningham said. “It’s not like we’re not trying, so that was kind of my message to the kids and I think we’re close and we’re learning.”
Ottensmeier led HHS with 14 points while Gunnar Mackey scored 6 points. Parker Macias, Kendall Lavender, and Owen Williams paced Alton Marquette (11-7) with 8 points each.
This story was originally published January 22, 2022 at 1:14 AM.