Hauser boys subdue Jac-Cen-Del on senior night, improve to 13-8

HOPE — Three Hauser seniors who normally come off the bench, had a chance to start for the Jets on senior night Friday.

But with three of their normal starters on the bench for the first quarter, Hauser didn’t miss a beat. The Jets jumped out to a 10-0 lead and rolled from there to an 81-52 win against Jac-Cen-Del.

“I thought the seniors did a great job getting us going and really had our emotion going at the start of the game,” Hauser coach Griff Roth said. “Then, (the other guys) fed off of the good start that the seniors gave us and just kept that momentum going.”

The Eagles (2-18) were within 17-13 with 30 seconds left in the first quarter. The Jets (13-8) then went on a 26-2 run to open a 43-15 lead with 3 minutes left in the first half.

Connor Wilson, the only senior who is normally a starter, scored 15 of his game-high 23 points during the run, most layups following on drives along the left baseline.

“I wasn’t hitting (from outside) this game, so I tried to drive it in,” Wilson said. “If I get past my man, then Alex (Gross) seals off his man, so I get a wide-open shot.”

Hauser led 49-21 at halftime and built the lead to 62-28 with 2½ minutes left in the third quarter. The Jets’ biggest lead came at 78-42 on a 3-pointer by senior Owen Green with 3:43 left in the game.

Justin Compton scored 10 points, and fellow junior Alex Gross added 10 points and 14 rebounds for Hauser, which outrebounded Jac-Cen-Del 33-21. Junior Mason Sherman had nine points.

“It was emotional for all of us,” Wilson said. “I feel like we’ll all remember this for a long time.”

Wilson’s twin brother, senior Clayton Wilson, finished with six points. The other senior, Pete Trotter, added four.

“It’s very enjoyable to see the seniors go out on a game like this,” Roth said. “I’m very proud of the work that they do day in and day out, very privileged to have those type of kids in the program.”