Hillsboro spoils Notre Dame's homecoming

A second-half rally wasn’t enough for Notre Dame to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, as the Bulldogs fell to the Hillsboro Hawks 82-76 during homecoming on Tuesday in Notre Dame Regional High School.

“We just had so many self-inflicted wounds in the first half and it's kind of the story of our season,” Notre Dame head coach Paul Unterreiner said. “If we can limit those and play with urgency, we'll see what we can do. Now can we put it together for four quarters?”

Kolton Johnson led the Bulldogs with 20 points. For much of the season, the sharp-shooting sophomore has been the top offensive option for Notre Dame.

“He shot the ball great,” Notre Dame forward Will Henry Steward said. “He's a big part of our offense, and when he's on, we're rolling.”

“I just think he's getting more and more aggressive,” Unterreiner said. “Not just the three-point shot, he's getting good at that mid-range game.”

Steward scored 13 of his 15 points in the first half, but he was the only Bulldog to score double-digits in the first two quarters. Hillsboro scored over 20 points in the first three quarters and had a 46-30 halftime lead.

The Bulldogs got their act together in the second half, as Johnson and Greg Dennis combined to score 22 of Notre Dame’s 24 third-quarter points. Dennis finished the game with 19 points.

Hillsboro also scored 24 points in the third quarter to maintain a 70-54 lead going into the fourth quarter. The Hawks made 10 baskets from the 3-point line and were led by Luka Pool’s 26 points, Noah Holland’s 17 points, and Kieren Jones’ 11 points.

Notre Dame made a valiant effort to launch a comeback in the fourth quarter with 22 points. Brett Dohogne scored seven of his nine points in the final period and the Bulldogs made 8-of-10 from the free throw line.

The last time Notre Dame (7-16) won a game was on Jan. 18 against Whitfield. The Bulldogs broke out a new offense last month in hopes that they will be better positioned for the postseason.

“I think you'll see that we're starting to get inside more getting our bigs involved, which is creating opportunities for guards to get some open looks,” Unterreiner said. “So it's just a work in progress. It's hard to do in the middle of the year and our guys have done a good job rolling with it."

“I feel like we've adjusted pretty well,” Steward said. “It was a little sloppy at first, but we're starting to get the hang of it and it's getting better and better for us.”

Notre Dame travels to Poplar Bluff for the final road game of the regular season on Friday at 7:30 p.m. The Bulldogs, hoping to stop the skid before then, close out the regular season at home against Dexter. The Bearcats (15-6) and Doniphan (14-6) are the only teams in Class 4 District 1 to have winning records, so even if Notre Dame doesn’t win the title, there’s still some room to make noise in the tournament.

“I think recently, we played a lot harder teams going up there and next up I feel like we're just gaining momentum and getting good minutes for everyone,” Steward said, “and we got a lot of momentum going in the districts here.“