Highlands boys find right pace, win 10th straight meeting with Freeport

By: Josh Rizzo
Friday, January 6, 2023 | 10:14 PM

Fast, moderate or slow makes no difference to Highlands guard Cam Reigard.

The Golden Rams will be ready for any potential pratfall that will come their way.

Coming off a two-game losing streak and dealing with tragedy in the community this week, Highlands was able to bounce back by beating Freeport, 74-47, in Section 1-4A play Friday night at Freeport Middle School.

The Yellowjackets, who have lost 10 straight games to Highlands, attempted to slow the Golden Rams down. Freeport won the opening tip and controlled the ball for two minutes before finishing the possession with a layup by Parker Lucas off an offensive rebound.

“If they want to do that, that’s fine,” said Reigard, who scored a game-high 20 points. “We know how to defend and play half-court offense. Whatever they throw at us is fine. We’ll work with it.”

Freeport had a fundraiser during the game for Brackenridge Police Chief Justin McIntire, who was killed in the line of duty Monday. There was a moment of silence before the national anthem to recognize him.

Highlands coach Corey Dotchin said the team did its best to focus during the week.

“We just finished practice when that incident happened,” Dotchin said. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family. We wanted to keep them in good spirits and realize that life is valuable. Trying to use it as a learning experience that it is a blessing every day you get to go home.”

On the court, Highlands was attempting to stop a two-game skid. The Golden Rams (8-2, 1-1) had dropped consecutive games to Penn Hills and Hampton.

Highlands guard Jimmy Kunst said the focus was on getting stops. He wasn’t worried about tempo.

“We wanted to lock in defensively,” Kunst said. “We had some trouble last game against Hampton. I think that the biggest thing was playing better on defense.”

Highlands had four players — Reigard, Kunst (19 points), Braydn Foster (12) and Chandler Thimons (12) — finish in double figures scoring.

Both teams traded baskets to open the game before Highlands pulled away at the end of the first quarter. A layup from Reigard gave the Golden Rams the lead for good, 8-6, with 1 minutes, 23 seconds left in the first quarter.

Highlands opened the second quarter with a 7-2 run and stretched the lead to 33-22 at halftime. Yellowjackets coach Sean Devinney thought the gameplan slid away from Freeport (7-4, 0-2) as the game went on.

“We had a gameplan to slow this game down,” Devinney said. “We knew we had to control the pace if we had any chance of winning the game. Once again, we thought the gameplan was executed throughout the first quarter. We have to get mentally stronger. One quarter doesn’t win you a game.”

After halftime, Freeport cut the lead to 33-27 after Zach Clark’s three-point play. Clark and Gavin Croney tied for a team-high 14 points for the Yellowjackets.

However, Highlands responded with a 9-2 run that quickly gave the Golden Rams the momentum back. When it came to the end, Highlands dictated the pace and were able to halt its short losing skid.

“We definitely want to speed them up,” Kunst said. “I think our trapping ability and really trying to speed them up. They were scoring at the beginning of the game, but the more pressure we put on them, the better.”

Tags: Freeport, Highlands