The Harmony Grove Hornets entered last Saturday's Senior Night home game against the Dewitt Dragons with serious confidence. The Hornets were well rested as they have not played a game in over a week due to the ice storms in the state. They were facing a Dragons team that had played a game less than 24 hours before taking on the Hornets. Harmony Grove also felt they could get another big win over Dewitt after previously defeating the Dragons on the road 64-58 on Jan. 6.
While the Hornets had the talent on the offensive end of the court to keep up with the Dragons, it was the defense that struggled to slow down the momentum and rhythm of Dewitt as Harmony Grove fell 78-68 on Senior Night.
Both teams started on hot by attacking the basket either from the paint or from the three-point arc. Hornets senior forward Braden Brown was on fire from downtown as he made four straight three-pointers. When the Dragons put more pressure on the three-point shot opportunities, the Hornets were more aggressive at driving to the basket. The Hornets were on top of an offensive-heavy first quarter 23-22.
Dewitt started to gain some momentum as the second quarter started. The Dragons were finding their rhythm while the Hornets struggled driving to the paint and experienced turnovers. Harmony Grove allowed several second-chance opportunities for Dewitt to capitalize on. The Hornets allowed eight points from the Dragons' second-chance opportunities. The Dragons were 9-of-17 in field goals, while the Hornets were 5-of-13 in field goals. Dewitt took a 41-35 lead into halftime as the Dragons outscored the Hornets 19-13.
In the third quarter, the Hornets struggled to continue their shooting rhythm after making three consecutive baskets after their initial miss. The Hornets were driving into tight windows of the Dragons' defense as they chose not to take three-point shot attempts. The Dragons, on the other hand, were finding great scoring opportunities by getting more second-chance buckets. Dewitt took a 58-50 lead going into the final quarter of the game.
The Hornets had one of their better offensive quarters in the fourth as junior center Quinten Jones was leading the charge in the paint. Dewitt continued to push to the basket well and didn't have to rely on the mid-range and deep-shooting game. The Dragons had a solid offensive rhythm throughout the game and were playing physical ball despite playing a game less than 24 hours before facing the Hornets.
Harmony Grove was 24-of-60 (40%) in field goals and even found some solid looks from the three-point arc as they shot 6-of-16 from downtown. The Hornets couldn't capitalize on the small things such as making all of their needed shots at the free-throw line, as they were 10-of-20. The Dragons were 33-of-71 (46.5%) and only took six three-point shot attempts while only making one.
Sophomore guard Za'Kyus Smith was the team's leading scorer with 16 as he was 6-of-16 in field goals. He also got another double-double as he accounted for 13 rebounds. Smith recorded a block and a steal on the defensive end of the court. Junior guard Landon Garrett accounted for 13 points shooting 6-of-13 in field goals, six rebounds, and two steals. Junior center Quinten Jones accounted for 11 points shooting 5-of-8 in field goals and nine rebounds.
The Harmony Grove Hornets (8-14; 2-9 in 3A-8 region play) will have three games remaining in the regular season before regional tournament play. They will have a tough road test on Monday, Jan. 6 as they play a makeup game against the Dumas Bobcats (19-7; 11-0).