By John Rittenhouse
The Hills-Beaver Creek boys’ basketball team saved its best for last during Tuesday’s game against Edgerton in Hills.
The Patriots were sluggish in the first three quarters, and it led to deficits at each quarter break.
Just when it looked like H-BC might be upset by the Flying Dutchmen, the Patriots put together a 17-2 run late in the fourth quarter to pull out a 52-46 victory.
The win was H-BC’s eighth straight, leaving it with a 15-4 record for the season.
The victory upped the Patriots’ Red Rock Conference record to 13-0 heading into an important game against Southwest Christian in Edgerton tomorrow. The Patriots host Sioux Falls Christian Monday.
If not for the 17-2 run against Edgerton, H-BC might have fallen for the first time in league play. The rally started with 4:00 left in the fourth period and ended when Edgerton buried a three-point shot in the final seconds of the game.
"We went on a 17-2 run in the last four minutes to win the game," said Patriot coach Steve Wiertzema. "We really didn’t play very well until then."
Tyler Bush helped the Patriots turn things around when he converted a three-point play early in the 17-2 run.
Bush, who had three steals in the game, scored nine of his 13 points in the decisive fourth quarter.
Tyson Metzger and Trey Van Wyhe, who scored 19 and 15 points respectively, scored six points each in the fourth quarter.
Edgerton controlled play in the first three quarters of the game as it sported 14-4, 28-16 and 36-28 leads at the first three quarter breaks.
H-BC outscored the Flying Dutchmen 24-10 in the fourth quarter.
Metzger, Leuthold, Van Wyhe and Bush took down seven rebounds each. Wiertzema registered eight assists and three steals.
Box score
Bush 4 0 5-6 13, Wysong 0 0 0-0 0, Roozenboom 0 0 2-2 2, Wiertzema 0 0 2-4 2, Metzger 4 1 8-10 19, Leuthold 0 0 1-2 1, Van Wyhe 6 0 3-4 15.
Team statistics
H-BC: 15 of 41 field goals (37 percent), 21 of 28 free throws (75 percent), 30 rebounds, 11 turnovers.
Edgerton: 17 of 51 field goals (33 percent), eight of 14 free throws (57 percent), 29 rebounds, seven turnovers.
