Basketball - Panthers snap 5 game skid

On February 2, 2018, our Hartnell Men's Basketball team fell to the likes of San Jose 72-63, marking their 4th lost in a row. Sophomore (#22) Spencer Conrad would try to lift his team up behind his 32 points, but it was not enough as Hartnell would shoot 36% from the field while allowing San Jose to shoot 44% and allowing them to take 29 free throws. Shots being missed and no defensive pressure gave the game away and would send Hartnell on the road with another loss. On February 7, Hartnell fell to West Valley, making their 5th loss in a row at 78-63. In a game that seemed as an uphill battle from the start, Hartnell seemed to have a chance to catch up, but the Vikings never took their foot off the gas and continued to run the floor. Even with (#24) Rene Hurtado’s 25 points and (#5) Kishon Rogers 15 leading the way the Panthers still allowed the Vikings to shoot a stellar 47% from the field. Even with Hartnell shooting at 46%, West Valley put up 14 more shots than Hartnell and recorded 40 rebounds which proved to be the deciding factor in the game. The Panthers felt comfort heading back home to face De Anza on February 9 and used that to snap their losing streak and win 93-54. Hartnell executed perfection on both sides of the ball giving them great looks and solid coverage. Hartnell had 5 players record double digits and (#23) Jesse Hurtado and his brother (#24) Rene Hurtado lead the way with a combined 28 points. The Panthers didn't allow a single player from De Anza to record double digits in points and held them to a horrible 33% shooting from the field. It was this same play that had Hartnell looking like a serious threat earlier in the season and though they have hit a rough patch, winning their last two games would put them in a good position to make a playoff run. Go Panthers!