HOPE — It was ceremonious Friday night in Hauser’s boys basketball game.
The Jets celebrated homecoming night and had a special ceremony for Dave Irvine, who will retire Dec. 31 after his 20½ year reign as the school’s athletics director.
Edinburgh, however, never was a threat to play spoiler.
Hauser put up two significant runs that gave the Lancers no hope, and the Jets went on to cruise to a 72-50 Mid-Hoosier Conference victory.
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The Jets fans were showing their huge support, and the Hauser student section was singing holiday carols in the second half when Edinburgh was at the free-throw line.
“They got us pumped up and it got us going,” said Hauser senior Clayton Wilson, who was announced as homecoming king earlier in the evening.
The Jets (3-3, 1-0) played unselfish basketball, and it led to a 16-1 run that gave them a 21-7 lead.
Hauser maintained a 30-15 advantage before the Lancers (1-6, 1-2) climbed back by scoring eight straight points to cut the deficit 30-23. But that would be as close as they would get. Connor Wilson knocked down a 3 to extend the Jets’ lead back to double digits.
“It is amazing whenever the crowd gets into it,” Hauser junior Mason Sherman said. “It gets the blood flowing through our veins. We’re pumped up and we were ready to go out there and battle.”
The Jets put away the game for good in the third quarter. They played hard-nosed defense to jump out on a 17-2 run.
“We started pressing, and that got the game flowing in our direction,” Hauser assistant coach Griff Roth said. “The points started coming our way, and that run was really a difference in the game.”
Edinburgh coach Drew Glentzer said it was all about missed opportunities.
“We did not shoot the ball very well, and our foul shooting was not great,” Glentzer said. “The free-throw shooting and rebounding was the difference in the game. Hauser is a good team, but we knew that coming in. I thought we played well at times and got some good things going, but we could not make our shots.”
For the Jets, Connor Wilson finished with 17 points. Alex Gross and Sherman each added 16 points.
The Lancers’ Coltan Henderson had a game-high 20 points. Justin Fosskuhl added nine.
