Highlands rolled to a 78-68 victory over the Blue Ridge Early College Bobcats on Friday night as the Bobcats failed to find answers for the Highlanders drives to the inside and unwavering defense throughout the night.
The Highlanders took an early lead, finishing the first quarter up 17-10, but BREC quickly shot back in the second with a 4-0 run to start the period. Despite a pair of big threes from BREC Freshman Eric Puskarich and Senior Jacob Pressler as the second quarter wound down, Highlands was able to extend their lead at the half by repeatedly finding holes in their opponents’ defense in transition.
With just over a second left on the clock, Highlands Jeffery Olvera launched a half-court shot that found the net after a series of bizarre bounces, but the shot was called off as referees ruled it had struck the top of the backboard before going in. The Highlanders finished the first half up 36-26.
“Jeffrey took that shot well before time ran out so we couldn’t understand why the basket was waived off,” Highlands coach Brett Lamb said. “The referee didn’t offer much of an explanation other than to say it didn’t count.”
The Highlanders quickly got to work in the second half, beginning the third quarter with an 8-0 run. Blue Ridge was able to stop the momentum for a short time, battling back to within striking distance before another Highlands scoring spree gave the Highlanders a comfortable 10-point lead with seconds left on the clock. A second three-point buzzer beater from Highlands put them ahead 55-42 as the game entered the fourth quarter.
With both teams in the bonus, BREC’s starters began fouling out and Highlands capitalized on the openings the starters’ absence left, pushing the ball down court and continuing their fast-paced approach to great effect.
The Highlanders’ free throws were able to carry them over as they finished the game up 78-68.
“We shot 55 free throws in the game, which is an unheard of amount,” Lamb said. “We didn’t make a very high percentage, but we did enough to win. It wasn’t pretty, but some games are like that.”
Brent Sleight led Highlands with 25 points. Lane Tingen added 24 points and 17 rebounds.
Girls
The Lady Highlanders came out strong during their win over the Lady Bobcats, stifling a late game run from the cross-plateau rivals to secure a 45-39 victory.
The first quarter saw Highlands take a seven point lead, with key baskets from sophomore Bella Wilson and a suffocating full court press shutting the Lady Bobcats down at every turn.
“Blue Ridge always plays hard, they give max effort, and we knew we would have to match that effort to win,” Lamb said. “I thought we did a good job defensively most of the night and we got baskets at key times.”
Things stabilized for the Lady Bobcats in the second quarter, and Highlands was not able to extend their lead, finishing the half up 21-15. The Lady Bobcats quickly cut Highlands’ lead down to just two points early in the third quarter, but a layup from Wilson followed shortly thereafter by a steal and another bucket from Wilson in transition returned the Lady Highlanders to a comfortable position.