The Greene County boys basketball team has a 4-6 record going into the holiday break after losing three games in five days. The Rams lost to the Boone Toreadors in Jefferson Friday. Despite the score being close most of the game, the Rams lost by a 9-point margin, 84-75.
Like the game against Nevada at Wells Fargo Arena Tuesday, free throws made the difference. The Toreadors made 22 of 27 free throws for 81 percent, much better than their season average of 63.9 percent. The Rams made 15 of 24 from the line for 62.5 percent. Earlier in the season the Rams averaged about 80 percent at the line; going into Friday’s game, the average was 68.9 percent.
Lance Hughes again led the Rams in scoring, putting up 23 points. He was first to score in the game on a pair of free throws, and the Rams led the entire first quarter until the Toreadors’ last possession. A 3-point basket gave them the lead, 16-15, to finish the quarter.
The shooting of both teams was chilly early in the second quarter, with neither team scoring in the first three minutes. Boone warmed up first and held a 26-19 lead before Carter Morton put up a tres followed very quickly by a Hughes bucket followed by a free throw. It was another Morton basket that put the Rams up 27-26. The half ended with the Rams on the better side of a 31-30 score
Boone scored first in the third quarter to take a 33-31 lead. Trey Hinote, playing on two sore ankles, answered with the first of his five 3-point baskets to reclaim the lead for the Rams. The lead held until the very end of the quarter when a Hughes technical foul put the Toreadors at the line twice. The score at the end of the third quarter was 53-52 in favor of the Toreadors.
The Ram defense was polite to the Boone guests in the fourth quarter, allowing several uncontested lay-ups. The Rams trailed the entire quarter, with the Ram deficit at nine points, 74-65, with two minutes to play in the game. The Toreadors scored their last four points from the line. The Rams were down 84-72 when Morton made a long bucket. The final score was 84-73.
Hinote scored just one point in the first half, making one of a pair of free throws. He added 19 points in the second half with five 3-point baskets and a pair of 2-pointers. Morton finished the game with 17 points, including four 3-point baskets. Cael Fisher scored eight points with one long basket, Nick Breon scored five points, and Xavier Hayes scored two points, his first varsity points.
Before the game started Trey Hinote was honored for scoring 1,000 varsity points. He crossed that threshold in the game Monday against Woodward-Granger.
The game against the Toreadors was a non-conference game. The Rams are 2-4 in the Heart of Iowa Activities Conference.
The 2019 portion of the season begins Jan. 4 on the north outskirts of Des Moines against Saydel. The don’t play at home again until Jan. 14.
