Bulls still battling for first win
EUSTIS - The Hi-Line boys basketball team dropped a pair of home contests last week, falling to Maxwell, 66-46, on Tuesday before seeing a comeback attempt fall short against Pleasanton on Friday, 73-62.
The Bulls were 0-4 entering Tuesday’s home contest with Bertrand.
Tueday, Hi-Line struggled in the opening quarter as the Wildcats, who shot 51 percent from the field, lit up the scoreboard with 22 points in the opening quarter and led 22-5 after eight minutes.
Hi-Line regrouped and held their own in the second, but sliced just one point off the deficit as the Bulls trailed 35-19 at the break.
The Bulls defense continued to reign in the Wildcats in the third, but their offense coudln’t cut lead as Maxwell expanded the advantage to 47-26 through three.
Hi-Line nearly doubled its output in the fourth, but Maxwell was able to match their scoring and coasted to the finish in a 20-point victory.
The Bulls shot 29 percent from the field as Cade Schmidt led the team with ii points and Ian Corder scored nine while Ryker Evans and Cooper Ray each scored seven. The shooting struggles extended to the free throw line, where Hi-Line was just 7-for-20.
Schmidt finished a doubledouble with io rebounds and added two steals. Evans had eight boards and Colton Stubbs grabbed four. Isaiah Bullis dished four assists and he, Ray and Nate Hodge each had two steals.
Friday, the Bulls shot the ball better, but were beat up on the boards as Pleasanton used a 51-30 rebounding advantage to open up a 38-23 lead at the half, one the Bulldogs pushed to 55-37 through three quarters.
Hi-Line, which had a solid first quarter and trailed just 20-17 after one, put up 25 points in the final quarter to narrow the margin, but was unable to get enough stops to draw back into contention.
Schmidt led four Bulls in double-figures with another double-double of 15 points and 12 rebounds while Hodge scored 14, Corder scored 12 and Evans added 10. Schmidt, Corder and Evans each dished three assists and Hodge had five steals while Schmidt had four and Evans had three.
Hi-Line competes at SEM Friday and Saturday in a preholiday tournament.
