HYDRO — It was an offensive showdown for Hydro-Eakly Tuesday night in their game against Cement.
The Bobcats defeated Cement 95-56. It was by far their best offensive performance of the season, but the defense was a different story, as it was the most points the Bobcats had given up all season.
“We played very well on offense, but our defense was terrible,” coach Rick Gore said. “We were flat-footed and did not move. Now, we did not have school Tuesday, so we were out of our usual routine. They hit some shots on us leaving them open, but I am glad we got the win.”
Both teams shot the basketball well in the first quarter, and Hydro-Eakly was ahead 17-12 midway through the first quarter. Nolan Gore scored nine of those 17 points.
The Bobcats picked it up on defense and closed the first quarter on an 18-5 run with plays like Nolan Gore grabbing three rebounds in the first quarter. Hydro-Eakly was ahead 35-17 and Nolan Gore threw an alley oop to Carson Propps at the buzzer.
Hydro-Eakly played outstanding on offense in the second quarter. Three players for Hydro-Eakly scored all the points in the first half. Nolan Gore scored 25 points, Paxton Price scored 16 points and Propps scored 12 points. Hydro-Eakly was ahead 53-29 at halftime. They had some trouble defending, but Nolan Gore recorded five rebounds and Kolsen Tharp recorded four rebounds.
Hydro-Eakly’s bench played well in the second half, with plays like Ryder Klaassen scoring a contested 3-pointer. Gore pulled his starters in the third quarter and Hydro-Eakly was ahead 81-43 going into the fourth quarter and Calynn Henderson scored a 3-pointer with five seconds left to play in the third quarter.
The bench continued to play well, when Parker Price stole a pass and went coast to coast on the other end and was fouled. Hydro-Eakly did some work on both sides of the ball and won the game 95-56.
“We are so tall and athletic,” Gore said. “However, this means we can get by with some lazy mistakes now, but we will need to fix this. We have to go back to the fundamentals. We did not do a good job on defense and pressing, but we will get better.”
Nolan Gore had a double-double, with 33 points and 10 rebounds, which was a career high for him points wise. Nolan Gore also only missed one shot in the field, going 14-15. Paxton Price scored 20 points. Propps scored 14 points.
“Nolan played well and he works hard,” Gore said. “Everyone chipped in on offense and played well. We did a great job scoring and we will not have any problems scoring points. Going 14-15 from the field is really good.”
Parker Price had eight points, Brand McKay scored six points, with two 3-pointers. Klaassen scored five points.
“The bench played awesome and I cannot say enough about how well they played,” Gore said. “We had great energy and I told the guys this in the locker room. They deserved all the playing time they got and work so hard. I was so happy for them.”
Hydro-Eakly improves to 5-0 and will play it next game, 8 p.m., Tuesday night at Corn Bible Academy. Hydro-Eakly was invited to play in the tournament of Champions in Tulsa in late December and Gore said they will begin preparation for this tournament as well.
“We are starting to focus on the tournament of champions coming up in a month,” Gore said. “We will pick it up and get ready for the tough tournament. Thanksgiving will be relaxed, but then we will get back to work.”