Hawks Fight Off Piasa Birds To Start Boys Basketball Season
Carrollton rolled to a 10-2 lead, but Southwestern rallied and made it 15-12 Carrollton at the half. The game remained tight in the second quarter, but the Hawks broke away and had a 13-point lead with six minutes left. The Piasa Birds crept to within seven points (57-50) with three minutes to play, but the Hawks were able to snare rebounds and steals for layups to preserve the win.
Gabe Jones scored 21 points to pace the Hawks. E.J. Kahl had 20 points to lead Southwestern, followed by Addis Moore with 15 points. Brady Salzman had nine points. Hunter Flowers and Nathan Walker both tallied 12 points and Ethan Brannan had nine points and six steals.
Carrollton, 1-0, plays Friday at Roxana, while Southwestern, 2-3, hosts Wesclin on Dec. 4.
Carrollton head boys basketball coach Matt Goetten said: “This is our first game; and was their fifth game, so that made a difference. Early on, we exerted the pressure and got into foul trouble. Nate Walker is our primary defender, he got two early fouls. Overall, I was pleased with most of the effort.”
Southwestern head coach Jason Darr said Carrollton is very athletic and hard to guard. “We tried to figure out ways to shut them off defensively,” he said.
