By Cort Reynolds
ADA - Host Ada dominated county foe Hardin Northern 65-46 Saturday night to post a decisive non-league boys basketball rivalry victory.
The Bulldogs jumped out to an 18-7 first period lead and never trailed in the game. Playing well, Ada extended the margin to 34-14 at intermission. HN rallied within nine late in the third stanza but could get no closer.
The Bulldogs pulled away with a 19-10 fourth period to win by 19. Hard-driving junior playmaker Brandon Hull continued his strong play with a game-high 27 points and several assists.
Ada improved to 6-8 overall with the convincing win. HN dropped to an identical 6-8 mark with the defeat.
"Overall I am really happy with our play," said Ada head coach Dre White. "Brandon is sneaky strong, strong enough to finish through contact. It was great to see him make his free throws too (10-13).
"It was a very good start for us and a good first half," he added. "Brandon did a good job controlling the game, and Phil got it going early."
Ada senior wing Phillip Coulson netted 10 of his 18 points in the first period to help spearhead the Bulldog charge.
His right wing triple, and a baseline-driving left-handed reverse layin by Hull gave Ada a 4-1 lead early. Coulson then canned two driving layups and buried a left wing trey to extend the lead to 14-7.
A fast break layup by Trent Ennis and a short banker by Cayden Murphy gave Ada an 11-point margin after one period. Active HN senior post Ewan Martin contributed a layup and a reverse layin in the opening stanza.
"Martin is an x factor for them, he plays with a lot of effort," White noted. "He gets on the offensive boards."
A triple from the top of the key by Murphy sparked the Bulldogs early in the second quarter.
"Cayden has a bright future, he works hard in practice," said White. "That was a big three he hit."
After Martin scored on a nice up and under maneuver, Ada junior Zac Swaney splashed a right corner trifecta.
Polar Bear Owen Wetherill netted a 12-footer and Cole Morris sank a transition layup to cut the deficit to 24-14. But then Ada ended the half on a 10-0 spurt.
Hull knocked down a 14-footer, followed by Coulson's left wing triple. Ty Miller canned a short banker at the 1:20 mark, and Hull drained a trey 15 seconds before intermission to give the Bulldogs a 34-14 bulge.
HN came out strong to start the second half and put together a 22-12 quarter to position themselves within striking distance. Lance Good scored inside off an in-bounds play, and Luke Wilson canned a lane shot to make it 34-19.
Yet Hull converted a traditional three-point play, and Coulson netted a right corner triple to restore the lead to 40-19. "That was a timely three that Phil hit," said White.
HN sophomore Nevin Robson sank a leaner and Wetherill buried a triple. Hull responded with a second driving three-point play to build the lead to 43-23 at the 3:23 juncture.
Robson converted two charity stripers, then stole the ball and made a layup. Martin came up with a swipe and layin, followed by Robson's pull-up shot in the lane.
Wetherill's driving layup capped a 10-0 flurry that inched the Bears within 43-34. But Hull stemmed their momentum with another three-point drive.
Martin's putback with four ticks remaining in the third stanza made it 46-36 heading to the final period.
Coulson started the fourth quarter with a transition layup. Hull converted his fourth old-fashioned three-point play with a southpaw layup to extend the advantage to 51-36.
Good hit a layup and Martin split two at the foul line, but HN never got closer than 12 after that. Miller bounced in a lane shot, then stole the ball and drove coast-to-coast for a layup.
"Ty did some nice things," observed White. "We really needed Ty, Rayl and Murphy to step up and match their inside game, and they did well."
Hull canned two foul shots to build the lead to 18. Wilson drained a right corner triple and Martin netted a spinning shot inside. Hull again hit a pair of free throws and then fed Jake Rayl nicely for a layin and a 61-44 cushion.
Wilson hit two free tosses to close the HN scoring. Two foul shots apiece from Hull and Ethan Murphy provided the final margin.
"Eight of our 10 guys who played scored," White pointed out.
Martin led HN with 13 points and Robson added 12.
The Bulldogs connected on 23 of 52 shots overall from the field (44 percent). Ada made seven of 19 from beyond the arc (37 percent) and 16 of 33 on two-pointers (48 percent).
HN canned 18 of 46 from the floor overall (39 percent). The Bears sank 17 of their 37 two-point tries (46 percent) and hit on just one of nine triple tries (11 percent).
Ada converted 12 of 19 from the foul line (63 percent), while
HN sank nine of 18 charity stripers (50 percent).
On the strength of 16 offensive caroms, Northern out-rebounded the Bulldogs 27-24. HN committed 10 turnovers while Ada was guilty of just nine miscues.
Ada also won the reserve contest decisively, 55-36. Tristan Conley led the Bulldogs with 17 markers while Grant Preston netted 15. Colby Curtis topped the HN JVs with 13 points.
Ada 65 (6-8)
Swaney 1 0-2 3, Hull 8 10-13 27, Coulson 7 0-0 18, Rayl 1 0-0 2, Miller 3 0-2 6, C. Murphy 2 0-0 5, Ennis 1 0-0 2, E. Murphy 0 2-2 2. Totals: 23-52/12-19/65. 3-pointers (7-19): Coulson 4, Hull 1, Swaney 1, C. Murphy 1.
HN 44 (6-8)
Wetherill 3 0-1 6, Robson 4 4-6 12, Martin 6 1-3 13, Wilson 2 2-4 7, Morris 1 0-0 2, Flowers 0 1-2 1, Good 2 1-2 5.
Totals: 18-46/9-18/46. 3-pointers (1-9): Wilson 1.
1 2 3 4 F
Ada 18 16 12 19 65
HN 7 7 22 10 46
JV: Ada 55, HN 36.
Ada (4-2 home) hosts talented Arlington (11-4) Tuesday night, January 21.
"Arlington will be tough," White said. "They shoot it well, have good guards and a lot of length."
Ada (1-2 NWC) then entertains struggling defending state champion Crestview (5-9, 1-3 NWC) Friday, January 24 in a league battle.
