“We got that early lead and then got some separation,” EHS coach Obie Farmer said. “Everything seemed to go right for us in that first half. The kids executed our offense and ran the set plays very well. We were finding our second and third options. We scored well, but everything was within the flow of our offense.
“But I thought our defense was the big difference in the game,” Farmer added. “They couldn’t get anything inside at all. Our length was an issue. We changed the trajectory on several of their shots. Our defense made it tough on them.”
First-half shooting was a telling statistic. The Hearts knocked down 14-of-25 attempts, a 56 percent clip; while the Maroons made just 4-of-23 shots, an icy 17 percent.
To Dieterich’s credit, they came out and played hard the second half. Freshman Luke Westendorf, after being held scoreless in the first half, connected on five shots in the third period, including two from three-point range. That shooting triggered a 12-5 surge that got the Maroons within 16. A bucket by Fox made it an 18-point spread, 49-31, heading to the final eight minutes.
“That dreaded third quarter,” Farmer noted. “We’ve struggled almost all year to come out of the locker room with any energy. We did it again tonight. Plus, we’ve struggled playing with the lead at times. We turned the ball over (six times in the period), plus they started hitting some shots.
“When you’re up by 24 points, it’s hard sometimes to play with the same intensity,” the EHS coach added. “We weren’t nearly as focused as we were in that first half. That second half looked more like a rec league game.”
Two free throws and then a three by Pete Britton got Dieterich within 15 points, 51-36, but that’s as close as the hosts got. Wolfe and Armando Estrada hit three-pointers to help keep the Hearts comfortably in front.
Britton and Westendorf led the Maroons with 18 and 14 points respectively. Dieterich ended up shooting 31 percent overall, making 15-of-48 shots. They were 6-for-20 from long range and 7-for-9 at the foul line.
Wolfe shared game scoring honors with 18 points and Fox also reached double figures with 10. The Hearts shot 50 percent, making 22-of-44 attempts. They were 7-for-19 from behind the arc and 9-for-16 at the charity stripe. Pals pulled down 10 rebounds to help Effingham to a 27-19 advantage on the boards.
The Hearts improved to 7-12 overall. They will now compete in the 70th Salem Invitational. They will open tourney play against Madison on Thursday night. That game is set for 6:30 p.m.
“That’s a tough tournament,” Farmer said. “We’re going to see some teams that play different styles, but it will be a great test for us. If we play as well as I know we can, we should be okay.”
