The Heart River boys basketball team went toe-to-toe with No. 6-ranked Hazen for all four quarters.
The Cougars’ 3-pointer sniper Cade Shypkowski received the final look he wanted, but couldn’t knock down the game-tying shot.
With the missed 3-point attempt, No. 3-seed Hazen escaped out of the quarterfinals of the Region 7 Tournament with a win over No. 6-seed Heart River 63-60 on Monday at Knights of Columbus Activities Center.
“We ran the play for him and we ran it perfect,” Heart River head coach Greg Pruitt said about Shypkowski, who finished with 17 points including 4 of 9 from 3-point range. “It was the shot he wanted. It just didn’t go in this time. Next time it will go in for him.
“The kids played hard that’s all we can ask.”
The Bison (18-4) played catch up throughout a majority of the fourth quarter. Heart River built a six-point, 55-49 lead after Tyson Kudrna hit a free throw. Kudrna finished with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Hazen continued to claw back and eventually took its final lead after Dominick Opp hit a 3-pointer with 1-minute, 9-seconds remaining. The Opp 3-pointer gave the Bison a 61-60 lead and Wyatt Carr, who finished with a team-high 17 points and six rebounds, supplied a layup with 19 seconds left. Carr’s layup were the final points scored in the contest.
“We preserved and came back for a win,” Hazen head coach Randy Johnson said. “It was hard fought battle for us. It took our entire team to do that.”
Prior to the fourth quarter, each team went shot-for-shot. The biggest lead in the game was seven points when Hazen held a 39-32 advantage.
Heart River led 19-18 after the first quarter and Hazen responded with a 30-28 halftime lead. The two teams battled back and forth in the third as the Bison had a slim 46-45 lead.
Despite Heart River having a size disadvantage, the team outrebounded Hazen 43-34. Kudrna - a 5-foot-11 - led the Cougars with 11 rebounds and 6-3 Hazen senior Austin Cieslak also had 11. Cieslak also finished with 12 points and three assists.
“We didn’t come out and defensively as well as we could of,” said Hazen senior guard Kyle Lindquist, who had 15 points and three assists. “We didn’t box out well, so we let them stay in the game. It came down to the end.”
As a team, Hazen went 24 of 58 (41 percent) from the field. The Cougars were 20 of 59 (34 percent).
Heart River’s Cole Olson ended with 11 points, four rebounds and three assists, while Dion Madler posted nine points and four assists.
Collin Maas chipped in eight points and three assists for the Bison, while Opp sank a pair of 3’s for 6 points.
Hazen continues to the Region 7 Tournament semifinals to play No. 2-seed Dickinson Trinity at 7:30 p.m. today. In the previous game between the two teams, the Titans pulled off a 59-57 upset over then No. 8-ranked Bison on Jan. 18 at Knights of Columbus Activities Center.
“They are well coached, they are playing very well and they are very disciplined,” Johnson said. “We are going to have to play well there’s question about it. It’s their home court and we have to be at the top of our game.”
Heart River 19 28 45 60
Hazen 18 30 46 63
HR: Cade Shypkowski 17, Cole Olson 11, Tyson Kudrna 11, Dion Madler 9, Blayne Smith 7, Seth Privratsky 2, Zane Besler 2.
H: Wyatt Carr 17, Kyle Lindquist 15, Austin Cieslak 12, Collin Maas 8, Dominick Opp 6, Josh Erhardt 3, Nicholas Klein 2.
3-pointers: HR 6 (Shypkowski 4, Olson 1, Kudrna 1), H 6 (Opp 2, Maas 2, Erhardt 1, Lindquist 1). Free throws: HR 14-24, H 9-15. Total fouls: HR 11, H 20. Rebounds: HR 43 (Kudrna 11), H 34 (Cieslak 11). Assists: HR 12 (Madler 4), H 15 (four tied with three). Steals: HR 8 (three tied with two), H 8. Blocks: none. Turnovers: HR 8, H 8. Records: HR 12-10, H 18-4.
