Hawks Flyby Colts

If the first quarter was any indication of how last night's battle between Calhoun and Plainview was going to go, we would have been in for a great game. The Colts were playing solid defense and were executing fundamentally, and that allowed them to hang with the talented Hawks.

But the game is more than eight minutes long.

The Hawks quickly took control of the game from the beginning of the second quarter on, and the Colts did not stand a chance. A fierce attack and stifling defensive game took away all of the firepower Calhoun had, and the game got out of hand quickly. Plainview cruised to an easy 62-34 victory.

"We came out and we stayed in the game early," Calhoun coach Jay Kreutzberger said. "We were able to do the little things and execute fundamentally. When we stopped doing those things, the game got away."

Calhoun failed to have a player in double figures in scoring. Danny Trepel led the way with nine points.

"They beat us down the court," Trepel said. "We didn't defend well after the first quarter. We need to work on playing a complete game."

Early on, Calhoun (4-7) was hanging tough with the Hawks, but they just weren't able to sustain enough pressure to make much of a difference in the long run.

Plainview Coach Mike Harris attributed his team's success to defense.

"We switched from the zone to a man defense," Harris said. "Defense is really our bread and butter. We have held our opponents to under 40 points per game thus far."

One guy who was a constant pain in the neck for Calhoun was Plainview's Zach Amateau, who executed a number of solid drives to the basket, and he also pulled up for several impressive jumpers. He also led the way for Plainview with 16 points.

"We got some steals, and we were able to execute on our layups," Amateau said. "In the second half we knocked down our shots, and we played well as a unit. I am proud of the job we did defensively."

As Plainview (9-2) continued to nail easy shots, the Colts did nothing to keep themselves in the contest. Calhoun continued to turn the ball over and suddenly the deficit was 38, and the game was long over.

Chad Fuschillo was second on the Colts in scoring with seven points, and he was not happy with the way his team took care of the basketball.

"We need to protect the ball," Fuschillo said. "Tonight, we were careless with the basketball. We just weren't able to execute at all tonight. It was frustrating."

The Colts were without their services of their star big man John Wigand, who watched the game from the bench. Wigand has been nursing a hip injury, and Kreutzberger didn't know much about if or when Wigand will be available.

"We don't know the extent [of the injury] yet," Kreutzberger said. "We are hoping for the best."

Calhoun will next be in action on Saturday when they visit the Braves of Syosset at 4 p.m.