Saxony routs Doniphan, Hartmann gets 1,000

The Saxony Lutheran Crusaders boys basketball team defeated the Doniphan Dons 75-33 on Friday at Saxony Lutheran High School. John Hartmann led the Crusaders with 26 points and Luke Eggemeyer with 21 points, those 26 for Hartmann earned him his 1,000th point.

Saxony opened the game on a 7-0 run with back-to-back threes from Hartmann and forced Doniphan to use a quick timeout. After the timeout, Doniphan managed to get some offense going but defensively could not stop the Crusaders as Saxony led 22-12 after the first quarter.

The Crusaders dominated the second quarter, holding the Dons to just five points and extending their lead to 39-17 at the half. Saxony head coach Justin Callahan said improved shooting and defense led to the win.

“Against Notre Dame, we were 4-24 from three, against Kelly we were 3-13 so we put the ball in the basket much better tonight,” Callahan said. “We have been having trouble on defense, particularly our 1-3-1, not getting the results we want and we did a much better job in that aspect tonight.”

Saxony proved to be too much for the Dons as they extended the lead to more than 30, forcing the running clock in the fourth.

The fourth was when Hartmann made his accomplishment, needing just eight more points to reach 1,000 he managed to score on four straight possessions, much to the joy of the Crusader fans. Callahan said he was aware John could reach the milestone tonight and he was glad it happened at home.

“Tonight we knew there was an outside chance depending on how well he shot. He came out ready to get it done and scored 13 in the first half,” Callahan said. “He needed six points in the fourth quarter, so I just let him go one-on-one, and to his credit, he stepped up and got it done.”

Saxony will host St. Vincent on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.