HOPE — With the excitement of Homecoming taking place and Mid-Hoosier Conference rival Edinburgh visiting, Hauser knew this was a chance to take a major step in the right direction for its season.
In nail biting fashion, the Jets contained a late comeback from the Lancers to come away with the 69-66 boys basketball victory Friday night.
“It means everything to us confidence wise,” said Jackson Paradise who led Hauser with 21 points. “Being able to get a conference win, coach (Nate) Cangany talked about us playing the whole game and coming out with energy and we did that. Its just a great win for us.”
Both teams came out a little sloppy to begin the game, combining for nine total turnovers in the first quarter, and Edinburgh (3-4, 2-2) held a 17-16 lead. Neither team was able to gain an advantage in the second quarter, when both the Jets (3-3, 1-1) and Lancers scored 12 points apiece to allow Edinburgh to go into the half up 29-28.
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Leading 37-36 with four minutes remaining in the third quarter, Hauser put the clamps down on the Lancers, going on a 5-0 run over a 2 1/2-minute time frame to extend the lead to six. A late basket by Bryce Burton allowed Edinburgh cut the lead to four heading into the fourth quarter.
The Jets used their defense yet again to begin the fourth period to stretch their lead. After the Lancers scored a bucket 30 seconds into the quarter, Hauser held them scoreless for the next three minutes using its own 5-0 run, led by Sean Miller, who scored eight fourth-quarter points, to push the lead to nine.
“We want to be known as a defensive ballclub,” Cangany said. “And when you defend like we did in certain stretches, you give yourself a chance to win on any given night.”
With a lead of 61-52 and two minutes remaining, the Jets seemed poised to run out the clock for victory. Burton had other plans, leading a 6-0 charge to cut the lead to four with a minute remaining. In the bonus, Hauser was able to sink six of their nine free throws late to hold onto the victory.
“Unfortunately, that’s kind of been the common thread for us through our first six games,” Edinburgh coach Keith Witty said of his team’s offensive dry spells in the second half. “Obviously, its something we got to get better at.”
Colton Henderson’s 24 points and Burton’s 23 points led the Lancers. Jackson Paradise scored 21 points for Hauser, while Miller added 13 and Brock Thalls and Will Trotter each chipped in 11.
