HMS boys hoops squads battle through busy week

Last week was a busy time for the Houston Middle School boys basketball teams, as they played twice at home and once on the road.

The flurry began with a sweep of home games against Cabool on Monday, with the 7^th-grade Tigers (B-Team) winning 37-23 and the 8^th-grade squad (A-Team) prevailing 49-24.

Karson McCain led Houston in scoring in the 7^th-grade contest, pouring in 9 points in the third quarter and finishing with 11. Griffon Aaron scored 10 points for the Tigers (all in the first half), while Tucker Venn added 8.

In the A-Team’s win, Jackson Morgan led the offense with 15 points, while Thomas Kincaid had 10, Aaron had 9 and Venn added 7.

On Tuesday at Ava, the 7^th-grade Tigers topped the host Bears 37-14 and 8^th-grade squad fell 41-23.

Aaron and Venn scored 12 points apiece in the 7^th-graders’ triumph, while McCain added 9.

Houston’s 8^th-graders trailed by only 3 points at halftime before succumbing after the break.

“Their size eventually killed us,” said head coach Jake Brookshire.

Morgan led the Tigers in scoring with 8 points, while Kincaid had 5.

In home games against Thayer on Thursday, the HMS B-Team fell 39-35 in double-overtime and the 8^th-grade squad was defeated 49-17.

The young Tigers hindered their own efforts against the undefeated Bobcats by sinking only 10-of-28 free throws in the contest.

“Free throws were the story of this game,” Brookshire said. “Thayer is a very good team and I was really proud of our kids.” 

Aaron led Houston in scoring with 20 points, while Venn had 7 and Meier added 4.

“Roper Hamilton didn’t get into the scoring column but played excellent defense on their best kid the entire second quarter,” Brookshire said. “It was a great team effort, but ultimately we just fell short at the end.”  

Against an athletic Thayer team with big inside players, Houston’s A-Team trailed by on 7 points at halftime.

“But their athleticism and size allowed them to make it extremely hard on us to score,” Brookshire said. “We did get a lot of good shots, but they just wouldn’t fall.”  

Meier and Gage Smith each scored 5 points for the Tigers, while Morgan, Kincaid and Honeycutt added 2 apiece.

Following the week’s results, the A-Team’s record was 3-3 and the B-Team was 5-3.

This week, the two squads host St. James on Monday and travel to Licking on Tuesday.