Weekend leaves Trojan boys with two losses
Playing arguably the premier team in Class 3A, not to mention defending state champion, one thing the Hillsboro High School boys' basketball team could have benefited from Saturday against Wichita Collegiate would have been fresher legs.
Less than 24 hours after tumbling in a 68-60 wrestling match on the road at Halstead, the Trojans didn't have enough to stay with the Collegiate Spartans in Wichita.
The Spartans (16-2, 9-0 MCAA) jumped out to a 14-4 lead after the first quarter and never looked back, handing Hillsboro (10-8, 6-3 MCAA) its second loss in two days with a 56-44 setback.
Collegiate's pressure defense gave the Trojans trouble all night, forcing 17 turnovers — which led to 19 points.
It kept Hillsboro out of synch offensively in point guard Spencer Brown's season debut.
David Loewen and Clay Shewey combined for 27 points with Loewen scoring a team-high 15.
Hillsboro pulled to within 24-19 by halftime, outscoring Collegiate, 15-10, and shooting nearly 50 percent from the floor.
The Trojans opened the second half as ragged as they did the start, missing shots and turning the ball over while Collegiate again pushed its lead back to double-digits.
The Spartans caught fire from the field, burying 3-of-4 shots from outside, and shooting a blazing 61 percent in the second half.
Cole Fiegel stung Hillsboro for a game-high 17 points on 8-of-10 shooting.
Hillsboro closed out the regular season at home this week with a Tuesday night meeting against struggling Lyons, and will play Friday against the Smoky Valley Vikings.
In Friday's match-up against Halstead, Loewen scored a game-high 21 points against the Dragons, Daniel Jost added 14, while Gavin Serene and Shewey combined for 23 points but Hillsboro still fell short.
