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01/07/2017 11:00 PMBoys’ Basketball
The Morgan boys’ basketball team took a 63-47 defeat to East Hampton on Jan. 3 and then lost by a 65-39 final against Haddam-Killingworth on Jan. 4. In the previous week’s action, the Huskies (0-4) lost 46-31 versus Cromwell on Dec. 20 and then dropped a 49-47 contest against Portland on Dec. 23.
In the Cromwell game, Jake Anselmo had nine points, two rebounds, two assists, and two steals for Morgan. AJ Fritz had nine points and three boards, plus John Urban added five points and four off the glass. Morgan had trouble getting started and struggled to put the ball in the basket early, falling behind 14-7 after the first quarter and 22-14 at the half. Cromwell’s defense continued to limit Morgan to tough shots and no second-chance opportunities as the Huskies shot 41 percent on the night.
“What a tough place to go and play. We always get Cromwell at Cromwell early in the season and have struggled most years. They earn a lot of credit for the way they lock down defensively and tonight was no exception,” said Head Coach Ken Beeman. “Our coaching focus heading into this year was to not get outworked by anyone. The one sure thing you can control in a basketball game is your effort level. And we are committing to working as hard as we can at all times. Clearly, this does not mean you will win every game, but it will assure that you have taken the opportunity to compete. And even tonight, I think we competed and did work hard. We just struggled to score.”
Facing Portland, Anselmo led the Huskies with 10 points, five boards, three assists, and two steals. Fritz tallied 10 points, five rebounds, and two steals. Tyler Newfield netted five points, four boards, and three assists, while John Urban had eight points and four rebounds. Morgan jumped out to a 16-13 first quarter lead behind some timely scoring and strong defense. Following an even second frame and a tight third, the game was set to be decided in the fourth quarter. Portland took an aggressive approach in the final frame and Morgan could not overcome its opponent’s physicality. The Huskies committed some untimely turnovers that proved too much for them to hold on to the slim lead.
“Once again, I am proud of our boys’ commitment to working hard no matter what. That is no small task and they do it, no questions asked. This was a pretty good high school basketball game. It was quite entertaining, but frustrating to come out on the short end of it,” said Beeman. “I am not sure if we ran out of gas in the fourth or not. I do know that credit goes to Portland for really turning up the physical play and getting away with it. That forced us into some poor decisions, some ill-advised quick decisions, and some costly turnovers.”
Gymnastics
Haddam-Killingworth/Hale-Ray/Morgan competed against Valley Regional at Flip-Flop Gymnastics on Jan. 5. The team scored 92.5 points and took loss against host Valley, which scored 113.