Boys varsity basketball falls to FHN 73-43
More stories from Sam Tuori
The boys varsity basketball team was thoroughly outplayed by Forest Hills Northern from start to finish in a 76-46 loss last night. The Rangers turned the ball over 17 times, resulting in 20 points off of turnovers for the Huskies. FHC shot just 39% from the floor, compared to 57% from the Huskies.
FHN came out guns blazing in the first quarter, making five of their first six shots. The Huskies started the game out in a half-court press, and it proved to be very effective. They forced the Rangers into 5 first-quarter turnovers and converted those into 7 points. Husky guard Caleb Gildner provided a huge spark for them off of the bench, scoring 6 of his 18 points and grabbing a couple of steals in the quarter. FHN led 19-9 after one, and junior guard Mitch Wilkinson had 7 of the Rangers’ 9 points.
The Rangers came out playing much better in the second quarter and even went on a mini 6-0 run thanks to a pair of triples from Mitch and senior guard Josh Wise to make it an 8-point game. That’s as close as the Rangers would get for the rest of the night.
A big turning point in the quarter occurred when senior forward Tate Hallock grabbed a rebound and pushed the ball in transition. Tate made a great move but was unable to convert the layup that would have cut the lead down to 6 points. Instead, the Huskies rebounded and found a wide-open Trinidad Chambliss—who scored 16 points off the bench for FHN—for a three-pointer to give the Huskies an 11-point lead. That little 5-point swing all but put an end to any chance the Rangers had at a comeback. The Huskies hit three three-pointers in the second and led 30-18 at the break.
FHN started the second half extremely hot from the field, putting to rest any doubt over its lead. Northern went on an 11-0 run to really separate themselves from FHC. The Huskies missed just two shots all quarter long and outscored the Rangers by 8 in the quarter to lead 49-29 after three.
The Huskies were able to cause 6 more Ranger turnovers in the second half, leading to 10 points off of them. The Huskies missed just two shots in the fourth quarter to win 73-43.
The Rangers now fall to 11-6 on the year and 6-4 in OK White conference play. They will be back in action Wednesday night for Senior Night when they host the Lowell Red Arrows.
Sam Tuori is a sophomore at FHC and this will be his first year on the sports report. Sam plays on the JV Football team. He enjoys all things sports...
