GC boys succumb to slow start against E/PC
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GLENWOOD CITY junior Elek Anderson scored a basket during the Hilltoppers home conference game against Elmwood/Plum City December 14. —photo by Jacob Maes Photography
by Joel DeWitt
Sports Correspondent
GLENWOOD CITY — Heading into their third week of the season, the Glenwood City boys’ basketball team is still searching for that elusive first win. They would get their next opportunity last Thursday, December 16 when they faced the Wolves of Elmwood/Plum City.
While the Glenwood City defense would buckle down in the second half and only allow ten points, it was an anemic offensive first half and a long run by Elmwood/Plum City that would doom the Hilltoppers. The Wolves would use a 25-5 run to end the first half to take a commanding lead at 33-9. The Wolves would cruise from there for the 43-23 win. The loss drops the Hilltoppers to 0-5 on the year and 0-3 in conference play.
The Hilltoppers would keep things close out of the gate. After falling behind 8-1 in the first five minutes, consecutive buckets by the Hilltoppers would see them pull to within three point.
Brady McCarthy would get the first bucket in transition from five feet away. Drew Olson would follow that up with a 16-foot jump shot to make the score 8-5 and give the Hilltoppers some life.
However, Plum City/Elmwood center Colton Cross would hit a three-pointer with 10:25 remaining in the first half from the corner to stop the Hilltopper mini-run and be the catalyst for the Wolves large run. They would score the next 22 points over nearly eight minutes to stretch the lead to 29-5.
Even though the Hilltoppers would find themselves down 24 points at intermission, there was still plenty of fight left in this team. Glenwood City would use their hustle and determination to attempt to get back into the game.
“We continued with our game plan but did a better job limiting transition points and boxing out to limit second chance points,” Hilltopper Coach Patrick Olson said. “We also did a better job running our offense to limit possession time of E/PC.”
Even though those adjustments were not enough to get the Hilltoppers the win, they did hold the previous hot shotting Wolves to only ten second half points. The Glenwood offense would also find a little life when they closed out the final 5:20 of the game on a 9-2 run.
Olson would do much of the scoring in that run. He started it with a short shot in the lane. He would follow that up with a three-pointer from the top of the key. A layup for Olson would give him a quick seven points. McCarthy would cap the scoring with a jump shot in the lane to make it the final 43-23.
Olson led the team with 11 points on the evening, while McCarthy added nine. Olson also was the leader on the boards that night with seven rebounds.
“We continue to build off each game and practice situation,” Olson mentioned on his team’s progress. “As a program we often say, you win or you learn.
The Hilltoppers traveled to Clayton Tuesday, December 21 for a non-conference game against the Bears. The Bears are 1-4 on the season and the Hilltoppers are hoping they can pull off a road win for their first victory of the year. Tip-off is 7:15 p.m. The boys will have an extended holiday break before returning to the court on Tuesday, January 4 when they host Clear Lake in a non-conference game.