By Tad Heitkamp, coach
On January 17th, the JV Blue Dragons were back on the road to battle the Colman/Egan Hawks. The Blue Dragons came out of the locker room firing on all cylinders as they defeated Colman/Egan handedly 52-25.
“Wow…this is exactly what we as coaches expected from this team,” stated Heitkamp. “This group has all the ability and skill set to compete each and every night…and that’s exactly what we did for an entire 4 quarters.”
The visiting Blue Dragons jumped out to a 30-11 lead at the half and never looked back.
“I asked the guys to take advantages of their mistakes and play hard nose defense, which is what we did. We also ran our offensive sets very well, which led to some very easy scoring opportunities.”
Colton Buchholz had a great night as he led all scorers with 21 points, which included four 3 pointers. Ethan McGregor and Jackson Arend also had solid nights as they dented the nets for 8 points each, while Shea Smidt and Myles Hanson added 5 and 4 points. Isaiah Coburn and Cade Risty got in the scorebook with 3 and 2 points, as Cooper Smith added another point to the scoring column.
On the 21st of January, the Blue Dragons played host to the Alcester/Hudson Cubs in the confines of the “old gym”. The Blue Dragons did not come out playing inspired basketball the opening half as they seemed to be just going through the motions on the court, which allowed the Cubs to go into the locker room with a 16-13 lead.
“That first half was a struggle to watch,” stated Heitkamp. “I didn’t even talk X’s and O’s at halftime…instead I reminded the kids that playing the game of basketball is a privilege and not a right! They need to represent the name across the chest of their uniform and play to the expected level as a Blue Dragon.”
The home team bounced back on all levels the second half as they held Alcester/Hudson to 5 total points and torched the nets for 24 points, defeating the Cubs 37-21.
“That’s the standard we expect from this group…just wish they could get themselves motivated without their coach getting on his soapbox at halftime,” mentioned Heitkamp.
Colton Buchholz and Jackson Arend continue to lead the way in the scoring column as they hit for 10 and 8 points, while Isaiah Coburn connected for 7 points of his own. Shea Smidt, Michael Hanisch, and Myles Hanson all contributed with 4 points each.
