Viking overcome poor shooting to beat Atlanta
by Angie Asam, Staff Writer
Despite shooting just 26-27 percent from the floor Tuesday at home the Posen Vikings varsity boys? basketball team was able to squeak out a 60-57 win against the visiting Atlanta Huskies improving their record to 5-7 in the North Star League (NSL) and 5-10 overall.
?It was ugly but we will take it, we shot poor tonight. We missed a lot of easy shots and didn?t have a lot of energy on the floor. I have to give Atlanta credit, they came in here and gave us a run. We were able to hit some key shots in the end and break their press to get the win. Shane Hentkowski was fantastic on the boards tonight as he had 10 rebounds,? said coach Steve Hentkowski.
The Huskies came out shooting as junior Ryan Vandercook hit from downtown at the 7:25 mark. The Vikings answered with two quick baskets by sophomore Hentkowski to take the lead 4-3.
Vandercook then hit a two followed by two free throws by Hentkowski making the score 6-5 with five minutes left in the first quarter.
The Huskies scored again with 3:05 left to take a 8-6 lead. Junior Scott Couture would then hit a two to tie the game with 1:52 left in the first quarter. Hentkowski would then be fouled on a three-pointer and sink all three shots with just 11 seconds left in the quarter to give the Vikings the 11-8 lead to end the quarter.
Freshman Jerome Ciarkowski would be the first to find the bottom of the net as he scored at the 7:23 mark in the second quarter giving the Vikings a five-point lead. The Huskies answered with a two and then sent Couture to the line where he made both shots building the score to 15-10 in favor of the Vikings.
From there the game shifted back and forth as the two teams swapped points, the Huskies would be in foul trouble and send the Vikings to the line four times. The half time score widened to 30-22 in favor of the Vikings.
The Huskies outscored the Vikings in the third quarter 17-13 but the Vikings kept the 43-39 lead going into the fourth and final quarter.
The fourth quarter was much the same as the rest of the game with the teams swapping points, ultimately the Vikings were again outscored 18-17 but held on for the win with some key free throws by Couture, Aaron Romel and Jacob Delekta.
Hentkowski led the Vikings with a career high 29 points. Couture followed with 16 points while Ciarkowski had 8. Romel had seven rebounds to help in the win.
?We are a young inexperienced team, we are still learning the process. But in my mind tonight was a step backwards, we have played really well for three games in a row. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that the boys weren?t in school today and couldn?t find the energy. We had a turnaround in the third quarter with our defensive intensity picking up,? said coach Hentkowski.
LAST FRIDAY the Vikings traveled to Hale where they played well but couldn?t overcome the Eagles losing 66-55.
?Hale is leading the NSL and will most likely take the title this year. We played a fantastic game, our energy and defense were great, our offense was executing well and our zone defense gave them trouble. A couple of key rebounds down the stretch was the difference
The Vikings trailed by 17 in the third quarter and game back to cut Hale?s lead to just five with two minutes left in the game.
?Tyler Krajniak played a real good game for us coming off the bench and sparking the offense,? said coach Hentkowski. Krajniak would finish the game with 12 points. Hentkowski would again lead the team with 13 points while Couture added 10.
?I was proud of the way we played at Hale, now we have to get ready for Friday at Hillman. Hillman is a good team and it will be a huge battle of NSL rivals,? said coach Steve Hentkowski.
The Vikings are at Hillman Friday and will finish the regular season with three home games on February 23, 27 and March 6 against Cedarville, Mio and Wolverine, respectively.