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<\/p>\nHETTINGER, N.D. \u2014 Beach Buccaneers head coach Ben Baker has stressed all season that his team needs to play \u201cteam basketball.\u201d They haven\u2019t done that for most of the year, and only had three wins on the campaign and one win in District 7 play.<\/p>\n
If the Buccaneers had any chance of keeping their season alive, and move onto the District 7 Tournament, they had to play as a collective unit for all four quarters against the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks.<\/p>\n
While it wasn\u2019t pretty, the Buccaneers escaped with a 54-51 victory to punch their ticket to the District 7 Tournament. Saturday\u2019s game featured a multitude of scoring runs from both teams, big shots from big time players and a near miss from half court at the buzzer.<\/p>\n
\n 1\/18:\u00a0The Beach Buccaneers defeated the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks 54-51 in the District 7 play-in game at Hettinger High School on Saturday, Feb. 21.
\n Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
\n 2\/18:\u00a0The Beach Buccaneers defeated the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks 54-51 in the District 7 play-in game at Hettinger High School on Saturday, Feb. 21.
\n Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
\n 3\/18:\u00a0The Beach Buccaneers defeated the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks 54-51 in the District 7 play-in game at Hettinger High School on Saturday, Feb. 21.
\n Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
\n 4\/18:\u00a0The Beach Buccaneers defeated the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks 54-51 in the District 7 play-in game at Hettinger High School on Saturday, Feb. 21.
\n Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
\n 5\/18:\u00a0The Beach Buccaneers defeated the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks 54-51 in the District 7 play-in game at Hettinger High School on Saturday, Feb. 21.
\n Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
\n 6\/18:\u00a0The Beach Buccaneers defeated the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks 54-51 in the District 7 play-in game at Hettinger High School on Saturday, Feb. 21.
\n Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
\n 7\/18:\u00a0The Beach Buccaneers defeated the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks 54-51 in the District 7 play-in game at Hettinger High School on Saturday, Feb. 21.
\n Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
\n 8\/18:\u00a0The Beach Buccaneers defeated the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks 54-51 in the District 7 play-in game at Hettinger High School on Saturday, Feb. 21.
\n Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
\n 9\/18:\u00a0The Beach Buccaneers defeated the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks 54-51 in the District 7 play-in game at Hettinger High School on Saturday, Feb. 21.
\n Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
\n 10\/18:\u00a0The Beach Buccaneers defeated the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks 54-51 in the District 7 play-in game at Hettinger High School on Saturday, Feb. 21.
\n Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
\n 11\/18:\u00a0The Beach Buccaneers defeated the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks 54-51 in the District 7 play-in game at Hettinger High School on Saturday, Feb. 21.
\n Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
\n 12\/18:\u00a0The Beach Buccaneers defeated the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks 54-51 in the District 7 play-in game at Hettinger High School on Saturday, Feb. 21.
\n Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
\n 13\/18:\u00a0The Beach Buccaneers defeated the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks 54-51 in the District 7 play-in game at Hettinger High School on Saturday, Feb. 21.
\n Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
\n 14\/18:\u00a0The Beach Buccaneers defeated the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks 54-51 in the District 7 play-in game at Hettinger High School on Saturday, Feb. 21.
\n Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
\n 15\/18:\u00a0The Beach Buccaneers defeated the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks 54-51 in the District 7 play-in game at Hettinger High School on Saturday, Feb. 21.
\n Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
\n 16\/18:\u00a0The Beach Buccaneers defeated the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks 54-51 in the District 7 play-in game at Hettinger High School on Saturday, Feb. 21.
\n Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
\n 17\/18:\u00a0The Beach Buccaneers defeated the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks 54-51 in the District 7 play-in game at Hettinger High School on Saturday, Feb. 21.
\n Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
\n 18\/18:\u00a0The Beach Buccaneers defeated the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks 54-51 in the District 7 play-in game at Hettinger High School on Saturday, Feb. 21.
\n Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
\u201cWe played great defense today,\u201d Baker said. \u201cFor our guys just to settle in and get a score after they went on a little bit of a run, it’s huge.\u201d<\/p>\n
Beach dominated in every area of the game in the first quarter. It got out to a 6-0 advantage and held a commanding 14-4 edge at the end of the opening frame. But the Nighthawks started to find their footing and break down Beach\u2019s 2-1-2 zone defense and went into the locker room down by five.<\/p>\n
The home team carried their momentum from the second in the opening seconds of the third, and eventually tied the game at 25-25. It went back-and-forth from there and with the score eventually knotted up at 30-30, the Buccaneers went on a 10-0 scoring run.<\/p>\n
Junior guard Nash Oech had his lone two field goals during Beach\u2019s rally in the third and he was one of nine players to get on the scoresheet on Saturday.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re all great ball players. We got some great ball players on this team. We\u2019ve struggled to work together all year, so they stepped up big and because their defense was pretty good, we had to play as a team,\u201d Senior guard Colt Ambo said. \u201cIt\u2019s a lot more fun basketball when you\u2019re playing as a team.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ambo paced the Buccaneers with 16 points. After Hettinger-Scranton climbed back in the fourth quarter to make it a three-point game, Ambo charged towards the rim for a put away to end the Nighthawks\u2019 scoring run. He hit his second 3-pointer of the game from the top of the arc to up his team\u2019s lead to 45-37 and then a 3-point play at the line to go up 48-39.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf he’s scoring, then that’s what opens up everything for everybody else,\u201d Baker said. \u201cHe stayed solid today. He sometimes likes to shoot too much and force some things, but today he settled in and played a great basketball game.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The Beach Buccaneers’ bench celebrates a 3-pointer against the Hettinger-Scranton Nighthawks on Saturday, Feb. 21 in their 54-51 win at Hettinger High School.<\/p>\n
Jacob Cheris \/ The Dickinson Press<\/p>\n
While he didn\u2019t have any points in the fourth, Bennett Braden was contributing all over the floor and was a key figure in Beach\u2019s fast start. The junior forward had some big blocks and rebounds throughout the game.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn my other game against Hettinger I had 21 [points], so I just thought I could do everything I did today and I just drove harder and I rebounded and shot with confidence,\u201d Braden said. \u201cWe have a deep roster. I think all those JV kids have confidence and they can step up when they need to.\u201d<\/p>\n
Things got chippy in the dying seconds of the game. Nighthawks senior guard Gavin Parnow drilled a deep three to slice the deficit to 53-51. After Ambo went 1-for-2 at the charity stripe, Fisher sent a hail mary that glanced off the outside of the rim and out.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we play team basketball, we’re going to win,\u201d Baker said. \u201cWe got to have consistent basketball play where we’re getting good looks, we’re playing team basketball, because if we don’t have consistency then that’s when the momentum shifts.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hettinger-Scranton did not have a lead the entire game. The trends of the game were similar to when the Nighthawks lost to Glen Ullin\/Hebron, back on Feb. 5, 56-51. A slow start leading to a thrilling comeback, but failing to get defensive stops late in the game.<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of the mistakes we’re making not to get those stops are things we preach every day. Getting to the midlines, boxing out and just all those little things,\u201d Hettinger-Scranton head coach Kelly Pierce said. \u201cIt catches up to you at the varsity level and when the pressure comes on, those small details are what are important.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Buccaneers will head into the District 7 tournament as the No. 9 seed and will take on top-seeded Bowman County on Friday, Feb. 27.<\/p>\n
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