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Hallam breaks 1,000-point mark; four hit double figures as Bronaugh races by NEVC
Herald-Tribune
Bronaugh Wildcat senior Patrick Hallam broke the 1,000-point barrier Thursday night in a fast-paced game in which senior teammate Blake Hudson fired in 30 points to lead all scorers as visiting Bronaugh steadily pulled away against conference rival Northeast Vernon County Thursday night.
Hallam scored 14 in the game.
Hallam's passing was just as effective as his scoring, helping two teammates hit double figures as well, as junior Chance Wait added 13 and senior Josh Willis 10.
"Patrick does everything for us," noted Coach Sean Crane. "Sometimes we don't need him to score as much but he does whatever we need. He's a good all-around player and a good athlete.
"He leads by example. He's a very quiet kid. This was a great night for him and I'm happy for him.
"This was definitely big for us, going into the break."
Hallam, who plans to play basketball at Fort Scott Community College, reached the career milestone with his first points of the game at the 4:06 mark of the first quarter. His jumper gave his team an 8-4 lead.
The game was stopped while Hallam received congratulations from his teammates and Coach Crane, as well as from each of the NEVC players and Coach Travis Cole.
The Bronaugh crowd came prepared for the occasion, displaying an array of signs, sprinkled among the visitors' section.
Following Hallam's three-pointer, the Knights responded with a six-point run, capped by Taylor Highfill's shot at 2:54.
But Bronaugh regained the lead by the quarter break, at 16-12, with Willis scoring his sixth and seventh points of the opening period at the 38-second mark.
The margin grew to double digits when Hallam drove in for a score at 2:52 to put his team ahead 26-16. The Wildcats added five more before the half closed, for a 31-18 lead capped by Thomas Kerbs' shot at the 18-second mark.
Hallam and Hudson had 9, and Willis had 8, at the break, while the Knights were paced by sophomore Highfill's 9, all in the first quarter. Starting guard Jacob Maus, who had 5, had to exit midway through the second period with foul trouble and didn't return until part way through the second half.
Maus, one of only two upperclassmen on the Knights' roster, marked his return with a three-pointer but the visitors responded with a 13-0 run over the next two and a half minutes to extend their advantage to 51-27 behind their press, forcing five turnovers.
Hudson had 6 of those points, with his drive making it 51-27 with 2:09 left in the period.
The Knights closed to 53-33 at the end of the period as Highfill scored just before the buzzer.
The teams matched points for the first four minutes of the final frame before Wait ran off 9 successive points of his own to pad the gap to 73-41 with just under two minutes left.
Reserves for Bronaugh closed the game.
Backing the four double-digit scorers for the Wildcats was Thomas Kerbs, who added 6.
Highfill's 15 paced NEVC. Maus added 10, sophomore Drue Hoagland, 9; sophomore Joel Baer, 6; freshman Tyrein Davis, 3; and sophomore Mitchell Longstreth, 2.