Squires lose home opener to

a very good Klahowya team

George Edgar

(Sports Writer)

After their first win of the season, the Mountain View Squires ran into an active bunch of Eagles.

The visiting Klahowya Eagles unleashed an active 2-3 zone on the host Squires, flustering them into a ton of turnovers throughout the game, and made them reluctant to shoot against the Eagles.

The result was a 55-37 loss that dropped the Squires to 1-1 early in the season.

Facing a couple of Eagles with extraordinary height – post Chris Visserman looked at least six feet tall and already a high schooler – the Squires found passes relentlessly contested and drives to the baskets blocked, as well as their shots blocked and altered. The Eagles forced the Squires into 28 turnovers.

Maurice Dunklin

“We played scared,” said Squires coach Maurice Dunklin. “But at the end of the day, my team has to learn to respond, and there were times that we responded.”

The Eagles led 30-10 at halftime and kept up the pace throughout. Visserman led Klahowys with 18 points, 10 rebounds, and three blocks.

“It’s only one loss at the beginning of the season,” Dunklin said. “I’d rather get that one L out of the way and finish strong.”

Maddox Lewis led the Squires with 11 points and 15 rebounds.

“Sometimes I feel like our experienced players feel they have to do more,” Dunklin said. “They got to trust in the whole body of work. One person is not going to beat one man. It’s going to take five to beat another five. Tonight, we have to learn to trust more. We have to know we can beat somebody.”

The Squires found a spark in the fourth quarter, being able to get up and down the floor after Visserman and some of the starters departed.

“It’s shows me that we got dogs,” Dunklin said. “A lot of them were ready to go in. I wanted to give my reserves some on the job training and they responded. It shows that my bench, my depth, is amazing.”

Mountain View looks to get back on track Monday against Curtis Middle School.

Klahowya Eagles - 16 14 15 20 - 55
Mountain View Squires - 6 4 9 18 - 37

M. Louis - 11 pts 15 reb 1 ast 5 stl 4 blk 6 to

J. Floyd - 6 pts 4 reb 1 stl 1 to

K Thomas - 5 pts 5 reb 2 ast 1 stl 4 blk 5 to

J. Anderson - 4 pts 2 reb 1 ast 3 stl 6 to

S. Arias - 4 pts 2 reb 1 ast 1 stl 1 blk 3 to

A. Melay - 2 pts 2 ast 1 stl 1 to
D. Thompson - 2 pts
F. Cofer - 2 pts

George Edgar

(Sports Writer)

edgar7892@yahoo.com