On Wednesday night, the Burlingame Panthers handled the Hillsdale Knights on their home floor, 78-61. The Panthers (12-7, 7-0 PAL-South), who are undefeated in league play, were led by Connor Haupt who finished with a game high 27 points and 10 rebounds, and Nick Loew who had 18 points and eight assists.
The Panthers dominated the boards all night grabbing a total of 27 rebounds, and their tenacious defense made many key turnovers that helped them ease to an easy win.
“We got after loose balls, and rebounded very well, the little things always add up,” said Burlingame coach Pete Haramas.
The Panthers controlled the game early by playing tough defense and making their jumpers and stepping out to a 22-10 lead over the Knights (12-7, 3-4) by the end of the first quarter.
Burlingame really turned it on in the second quarter and at one point went on a 12-3 run. By halftime, the score was 41-19 and Burlingame was able to coast to victory.
Even though the Knights were unable to complete the comeback, they did have a much stronger second half, led by Tushar Raghuram, who finished with 21 points. Point guard Stephan Hasegawa, who added eight points, did a good job for Hillsdale by controlling the tempo of the game.
“It is very easy to quit mentally out of games that are not close, however our team did a great job of staying focused and not allowing them (Hillsdale) to make a comeback,” said Haramas.
The Panthers extended their lead to 65-39 in the third quarter and finished with an easy 78-61 win.
“I thought we came out flat in the first half, what we did in the second half was what we should have been doing all game,” said Hillsdale Coach Brad Stevenson.
The Knights scored 42 points in the second half and made many shots from beyond the arc. The Panthers, on the other hand, played great defense down the stretch and they racked up many rebounds, which limited the Knights chances of scoring.
“We made our shots,” said Haupt, “It’s as simple as that.”
Indeed Burlingame, which looks to keep its unbeaten run going with a home game against Menlo-Atherton Wednesday night, nailed eight 3-pointers. Hillsdale hosts Woodside Wednesday night.
