DECATUR -- The Decatur senior boys continued their conference winning streak by adding two more victories to their record as they first traveled south to take on the Hackett Hornets Feb. 3, then took on the Mountainburg Dragons at home on Feb. 6.
In the Hackett matchup, Decatur was without the services of Pheng Lee, who was recovering from an ankle injury, and Terry Kell, who was out due to personal business.
The Bulldogs' game with the Hornets was primarily a defensive and close game. Throughout the first half, Decatur had trouble hitting the boards, allowing Hackett to keep the game close. The Bulldog defense, however, prevented the Hornets from overtaking Decatur, allowing only six points in the first quarter.
"We didn't shoot the ball very well against Hackett," said John Unger, head boys' basketball coach. "But our defense did a great job of shutting down Hackett's scoring abilities."
The Bulldogs pulled off another road victory by defeating the Hornets 41 to 30.
Decatur returned to the Lloyd Peterson Gym on Feb. 6 to take on the Mountainburg Dragons in their 12th conference game of the season.
The game started much as the Hackett game two days earlier, with the Bulldogs struggling to put the ball in the basket. Several missed opportunities by the Bulldogs allowed the Dragons to stay close.
But the Decatur defense prevented Mountainburg from taking the lead and held them to a four-point deficit at the end of the first quarter, 13 to 9, Decatur.
Decatur widened the lead in the second quarter, but the Bulldogs still struggled to put points on the board.
Mountainburg fell further behind in the contest, allowing Decatur to take a 21 to 14 lead into the locker room at the half.
Decatur continued to struggle at the boards through the third quarter. A slam dunk late in the fourth quarter sparked a rally for Decatur, putting the game out of reach for the Dragons and giving the Bulldogs the game, 39 to 27.
The Bulldogs are now 11 and 1 in conference and 18 and 7 overall.
"We held them to under 30 points," senior guard Victor Urquidi said. "If you hold them under 30 points, you will win the game and we did."
"I thought our defense was really good tonight. That's what kept us in the game," Unger said. "Mountainburg couldn't get a shot off. The only points they scored in the second half were free throws."
The Bulldogs made 16 shots of 60 attempts for around 30 percent.
"We could have given up but we hustled, and I think we got what we wanted, the win," said Mario Urquidi, team captain.
"If we had made our shots, we would have dominated the game," said Allan Castaneda, Decatur senior guard.
The Decatur Bulldogs faced second-place Eureka Springs Feb. 10 (after press time) in their last road game of the season.
If Decatur wins, the Bulldogs will take the regular season championship. Should they lose, they tie with Eureka Springs for the conference regular season championship.
Mountainburg Game
Leading scorer for the Bulldogs was Mario Urquidi with 19 points and 13 rebounds (another double-double), followed by Victor Urquidi with 8 points and 4 rebounds. Other Bulldog scorers included Terry Kell - 4 points and 2 rebounds, Meng Vang - 3 points and 8 rebounds, Allan Castaneda - 3 points and 1 rebound, Jefett Puga - 2 points. Rebounds only, include Leng Lee with 4, Bracy Owens with 2, Jay Porter with 1.
The last regular season game will be Feb. 12 in Peterson Gym against Magazine Leftwich. This will be seniors night. The game begins at 6 p.m.
Sports on 02/11/2015