Huskies finish as top dogs

It?s been 30 years in the making, but the Highland boys? basketball team is finally back on top.

The chips fell the right way for the Huskies, who claimed a 63-47 victory over Winfield-Mt. Union on Tuesday night, while Lone Tree suffered a loss to Pekin, 60-53.

That combination of results put Highland and Lone Tree each at four conference losses on the season, and with a season split between the two teams, they split the Southeast Iowa Super Conference North Division title.

For the Huskies, this is the first title they have laid claim to since 1986.

?It means that this group of players can put a stamp on our hard work,? Highland head coach Marcus Hall said. ?I thought the league was really good this year. The league was deep and the schedule was competitive. We played the whole schedule and finished strong.?

The north division featured six of its 10 teams winning at least 12 games on the season, while in the south division, five teams hit the 11-win mark.

In the game that clinched a share of the conference, Highland had a number of strong performances, including four athletes finishing in double digits, while junior Trent Lasek set a school record with 13 assists.

?I think it was our best performance (of the season), because we were able to compartmentalize the things that matter and the things that don?t,? Hall said. ?I thought we were more detail-oriented. Some of the things we look for happened in the game. We had good team play.?

Lasek?s 13 assists allowed him to finish the regular season with 5.7 assists per game, while leading the team with 13.1 points per game, and Hall was quick to note that the 2015 All-SEISC selection benefits from the athletes around him.

?It takes capable players around him,? Hall said. ?Players that run in transition and cut well, and are ready to shoot. He had 13 assists and had probably 25 good passes that resulted in a good shot that missed or us going to the free-throw line. His intuition and feel for the game is high. This is the second time in two weeks he?s broken the school assist record.?

The Huskies were led by senior Tereze Lanfair?s 16 points in the game, while senior Tucker Hall drained four 3-pointers for 14 points, senior Chris Mellinger went 5-of-7 from the floor for 11 points and senior Nick Sandburg recorded 11 points.

Highland will take part in an SEISC shootout contest at Southeast Community College in Burlington, where they will take on West Burlington, Notre Dame, before opening postseason play on Feb. 18 against New London.

The Huskies are one of the hotter teams in southeast Iowa at the moment, rattling off four straight wins, by an average margin of 14.5 points.

If Highland gets past New London, they will take on the winner of Lone Tree and Iowa Mennonite, two teams the Huskies know very well. They know they?ll be in for a fight regardless of whom they play.

?We are ready to play,? Hall said. ?I tell the guys often that records and seeds are forgotten quickly. Playing with your team in big games and big gyms, feeling that potential for greatness, that?s what is the most exciting. It?s what we play for. It?s not about what you?ve done in the past, except for the feelings you?ve gained from it.?