Hartsburg-Emden edges Delavan 49-47 in rescheduled game

[December 23, 2016]  Due to several basketball cancellations over the weekend, thanks to Mother Nature, fans of Hartsburg-Emden and Delavan had to wait a few extra days for this one. For the Stags it was well worth the wait. Despite falling behind to a Panthers team that loves to shoot the long ball, Hartem prevailed in the end.

With Delavan jumping out to a 15-6 first quarter lead, the Stags showed no signs of panic. The orange and black attack fought their way back to a slim halftime deficit of just 19-16.

By the time the third quarter had ended, the Stags were on top, much in thanks to the scoring of Brody Baker, who had 11 of the team’s 14 third quarter points.

Baker and Alec Hayes had four threes between them in the third as Hartem finally took the lead, 30-28.

A solid fourth quarter allowed the Stags to stay on top and earn the win over Delavan, 49-47. Baker led Hartem with 23 points. The Panthers, who made 10 three-point baskets on the night, placed three players in double figures.

Head Coach Jason Garber had many reasons to be happy following the Stags win over Delavan. “This was a hard fought team win for our guys. I thought we played extremely hard and with a lot of energy,” he said. "Delavan plays unbelievable good defense and took us out of a lot of things we tried to do offensively in the first half. They really limited our scoring opportunities. Brody Baker stepped up big for us in the third quarter and scored on three straight possessions to give us our first lead of the game.”

Finally summing up the win, Garber said, “Our guys played extremely hard on defense with a lot of heart and hustle and we were able to grind out the win.”

Hartsburg-Eden’s next game is Monday, December 26 at the Marseilles Christmas Tournament. The Stags are seeded 6 out of 16 teams. They will play Somonauk at 8 p.m. the first game according to Garber.

Hartem scoring

Baker 23
Wolpert 8
Hayes 8
Coit-Kirk 5
Phillips 3
Vetter 2

Delavan scoring

Hodges 12
Sieh 11
Matthews 10
Jackal 7
Vanneken 3
Johnson 3
Bell 1