DECATUR -- The Decatur Bulldogs senior boys' basketball team traveled east Dec. 9 to play Huntsville in the opening round of the Green Forest Tournament.
Huntsville, with a perfect 8 and 0 season, was tournament favorite and proved a formidable opponent for the Bulldogs.
Decatur played hard throughout the first half and led by seven points midway through the second period. Then a series of three-point shots by the Eagles whittled away at Decatur's lead and a last-second shot at the end of the second period moved Huntsville into the lead at half time.
The Bulldogs tried to keep pace with the Eagles throughout the third period. However, Huntsville's defense effectively shut down Decatur's leading player, Mario Urquidi, limiting him to only 8 points the entire game. This was the first game in which Urquidi was not in double figures. In fact, only two other players besides Mario Urquidi, Meng Vang and Victor Urquidi, would score. Huntsville took the contest 42 to 26, handing the Bulldogs the worst loss thus far this season.
"We played a great team tonight. Huntsville is very talented and did everything they had to do to win the game," John Unger, Deacatur's head basketball coach, said. "They hit the open shots and played great defense. We did an excellent job of competing with a very talented team. We just ran out of gas at the end and couldn't score when we needed to."
Victor Urquidi was the leading scorer for Decatur, with 12 points and three rebounds. Mario Urquidi scored eight points and had two rebounds. Meng Vang scored six points, with four rebounds. Terry Kell and Jason Porter were the other two Bulldogs with rebounds, one each.
"I was very proud of our guys. Huntsville is a team that will make a deep run in the state tournament in the 4A and we hung with them punch for punch til the end," Unger said. "Our guys continue to keep getting better each game and that is what's important right now early in the season."
Thursday, the Bulldogs traveled back to Green Forest to take on the St. Joe Wildcats, a 1A conference team. Decatur dominated the Wildcats throughout the game, winning by 14 points, 49 to 35.
"We played a good game defensively. We got the chance to work on our full-court press and we were able to play the bench many minutes. We were able to see who could contribute to our team in a game situation and learn how to play with a lead," Unger said.
Leading scorer for Decatur was Mario Urquidi with 20 points and nine rebounds, followed by his brother Victor with eight points and four rebounds.
"The biggest thing is that we continue to improve with every day and every game," Unger concluded. "The one thing we want to see is continuous improvement. We are trying to get ready for conference play this week."
The Bulldogs begin conference play Dec. 19 when the senior boys travel to Coal Hill to take on the Johnson County Westside Rebels. Game time is 7 p.m.
The senior girls and junior high boys also travel to Coal Hill Dec. 19. Game time is 5 p.m.
Decatur stats against St. Joe:
Meng Vang - 6 points with 4 rebounds, Bracy Owens - 6 points with 1 rebound, Terry Kell - 4 points with 4 rebounds, Pheng Lee - 2 points with 5 rebounds, Allan Castaneda - 2 points, Jaffett Puga - 1 point.
Sports on 12/17/2014