It’s been a thrilling season of mostly winning basketball this year for the Hillsboro Varsity Team, and last week they added two more wins to their total. Now riding a four-game win streak, the Hawks soared yet again with two big wins over Sullivan and Fox. Hillsboro is now 14-5 on the season, and sitting in second place in their district behind rival high school, Festus.
The first game of the week took place last Tuesday, January 25th, against the Sullivan Eagles. In this battle of the predatory birds, the Hawks took off fast with an early lead, racking up 21 first-quarter points, while holding the Eagles to only eight. It was more of the same in the second as Hillsboro kept climbing with another 20 to Sullivan’s 14, making it 41-22 at the half.
In the third quarter, there was no stopping Hillsboro who again rattled off an easy 20 to Sullivan’s 12. With the clock running in the fourth, the Hawks had achieved cruising altitude and easily held on to win the game, 68-46.
There were three Hawks that all hit the ‘teens in total points. Payton Brown and Kyle Phipps each netted 18, while Luka Pool put up 15. Brown also grabbed 11 rebounds and nabbed seven steals, while Kieren Jones had eight boards. With the victory, the Hawks found themselves on a mini-heater with three wins in a row.
Now with the steam building, the second game of the week was on Friday, January 28th, against Fox. This one started out more competitively, but Hillsboro still opened up hot with 24 points to Fox’s 15. In the next frame, the Hawks picked up the pace and out-gunned the Warriors 25-13, giving them a commanding 49-28 lead at halftime.
The third quarter was an absolute domination as Hillsboro poured it on with 25 more, and held Fox to only six. Again, the Hawks earned a running clock in the final quarter and sailed to a gigantic 80-43 win.
This one was a scoring showcase, and Phipps was unstoppable with 22 points. Noah Holland was just off of that, but still got 19 of his own, plus seven assists. Pool stayed hot with another 16 points, and seven assists as well.
Now officially on a hot streak, the Hawks look forward to this week, as they will travel to Cape Girardeau to play Central, and then head to Festus for a huge number one vs. number two district game that could be the difference maker in deciding the seeding for the final tournament.
