Undefeated Hillsboro teams roll past winless Smoky Valley teams

Facing a pair of winless Smoky Valley teams Tues?day night, the undefeated girls? and boys? teams from Hillsboro could be forgiven for sleeping walking their way to two more wins. But there was nothing sleepy about their effort. Both teams played hard, played well and earned the running-clock blowout victories they established.

The Trojan girls used a blazing hot start to steamroll the Vikings, 53-22, while the steady defensive pressure from the Trojan boys paved the way to their 63-29 victory in Lindsborg.

Hillsboro's Maddi Duerksen drives past a Smoky Valley during the first half of Tuesday game. Duerksen drained a three-pointer later in the contest.GIRLS — Like throwing a jaw-shattering haymaker at the opening bell, Hillsboro buried 10 of its first 11 shots of the game — including five three-pointers — to knock the home team out of contention. By the time Addie Lackey capped the streak with her second three-pointer of the game, the Trojans had established a 25-5 lead at the 6:45 mark of the second quarter.

But just as quickly, their hot hands cooled. Hillsboro made only three of its next 14 shots, but the Trojans coasted to a 35-9 lead at intermission. Lackey had 12 points by the break and Danae Bina 11.

Hillsboro?s cool-down continued into the first half of the third quarter — but there weren?t many consequences to pay as the Trojans still managed to protect their 26-point halftime lead with a 39-13 bulge at the 4:09 mark.

Then, kicking up the defensive pressure again, the Trojans burst into a 10-0 run over a 2:40 span to give them their largest lead of the night at 49-13 with 1:35 left in the quarter.

The continuous clock ran the entire fourth quarter and coach Nathan Hiebert cleared his bench with 4:43 left in the game.

Lackey finished as the team?s top scorer with 20 points. Bina was close behind with 16 as the Trojans, ranked No. 1 in Class 2A, improved to 7-0.

Micah Allen launches a three-point shot during the first half of Tuesday's game at Smoky Valley. Allen finished with a team-high 13 points. He made this shot and two others from behind the arc.?BOYS — It took a couple of minutes to get the Trojan train rumbling offensively, but Hillsboro?s aggressive defense is what ultimately fueled its 34-point victory.

With the game tied at 2-2, Evan Ollenburger scored in the paint to spark a 10-2 run capped by Jordan Faul?s three-pointer at the 3:58 mark of the opening quarter. When Micah Allen drained a three-pointer, then followed that just over a minute later with a baseline jumper, Hillsboro led 19-6 as the quarter ended.

Over the last 4:38 of the second quarter, four different Trojans contributed three-pointers — Allen, Faul, Brett Weinbrenner and Christian Ratzlaff — for a 15-4 surge, and a 39-14 lead, by intermission.

Hillsboro kept its foot on the pedal in the third quarter, inflating the lead to 57-23 as the buzzer sounded the final break. Six different Trojans contributed points.

The continuous clock — and Hillsboro?s bench players — made fast work of the final quarter as the Trojans improved to 7-0.

Allen finished as the team?s top scorer with 13 points, including three three-point baskets. Close behind were Weinbrenner and Ratzlaff with 11 points each and Faul with nine.

NEXT — Hillsboro will travel to Pratt Friday to take on the Greenbacks for the Trojans? first official Central Kansas League contest of the season.

 

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