Wednesday night special = Huskies wins

RIVERSIDE - The Saturday night special was a TV show invented to compete with Saturday Night Live. Last night in the Southeast Iowa Super Conference North Division there was a Wednesday night special which meant a boy/girl doubleheader between Highland and Lone Tree. Highland may want to always have Wednesday games after Dani Laughlin's 23 points helped the girls run past the Lions 58-38 and Chase Shultz's 25 points and critical rebounds helped the boys rally from 16 points down to win in overtime 55-54.

The benign start to the girls game (7-6 first quarter) changed to a dynamic middle and finish as head coach Jody Fink orchestrated 'the most complete game” of the year 'because we were composed in our play.”

Dani Laughlin's track meet-type sprints upcourt from rebounds ignited the Huskies offense.

'We are faster than other teams, so if we can get down there quick, we have a better shot because the defense is not ready,” Laughlin said.

Laughlin scored her first field goal just before the horn ended the first quarter, then produced the conventional three-point play and hit a 3-pointer in the last minute of the first half for Highland's 23-15 lead. A 10-2 run to start the second half was the result of buckets by Jenna Sands (who scored 12 in the game), Laughlin, and Abigail Stransky's 2-pointer, then 3-pointer. She scored all 13 of her points before the third quarter ended in the Huskies favor 42-23.

Laughlin salted the game away in the fourth with eight of her 23 points, including 4-for-4 on free throws.

'That's what I expect out of her every game because, even though she is just a sophomore, she is capable,” said Fink, who missed games being sick.

Laughlin's energetic forays caused the Lions to be 'frazzled. It helps that Coach is back. We all felt bad for him and that brought us closer as a team and now that he's back, I think we're better.”

The boys game wasn't special until the end. The Huskies got a great start with the first two baskets by Schultz contributing to a lead of 11-3.

'Chase has really come into his own the last week and a half,” Highland coach Bill Zywiec said of Schultz and his rebound totals (16 against Hillcrest Tuesday and 12 Wednesday). 'He has a big body that takes up room in the paint and makes things easier for us.”

Lone Tree closed the first quarter on an 8-2 run, scored the first seven points of the second and led 25-19 at the break.

Down 45-36 to start the fourth, Highland went to a man defense. Connor Grinstead scored first, Schultz converted a three-point play, Brenton Bonebrake canned a triple and a two off a steal and now Highland is within 50-46 with 5:12 remaining.

'The first half, we didn't play as a team, but when we went man-to-man in the second half, especially in the fourth quarter, I think the pressure of picking them up full court turned the game to our advantage,” Zywiec said.

A Grinstead basket tied it at 52 with 2:37 remaining, but neither team scored although each had multiple chances.

The Lions' Tyler Bell scored first in overtime and Schultz answered with 2:26 left. A block by Tristan Stokes, who had 11 points, with 50 seconds left set up Grinstead's two free throws with :29 remaining that were the difference as Lone Tree made 1-of-2 with 5 seconds left and Stokes got the rebound and was fouled. He missed both foul shots but Schultz got his most important rebound of the night and cuddles the ball for the final seconds.

'We played not to lose and gave up big offensive rebounds,” LT head coach Tom Squiers said. 'We had 15 turnovers in the fourth quarter.”