Harrison Central Huskies fall 59-53 to Brooke Bruins Dec. 9

The Harrison Central Huskies boys basketball team is off to an 0-3 start, but they are much closer to a 3-0 mark than many around the valley likely realize. The early season trend for Harrison Central is quite clear; they bring a fevered effort to the floor that frustrates the opposition. However, offensive production late in games has been the Achilles' heel through the first two weeks of the season.

Much like Union Local in the season opener, the Brooke Bruins (1-1) took advantage of this weakness last Tuesday night, rallying from a five-point fourth-quarter deficit to top the Huskies 59-53.

Three nights later the Huskies hosted the East Liverpool Potters (2-1) in their home opener, and the rims once again froze up on the Huskies in the final moments. With 3:59 remaining on the fourth-quarter clock, the Huskies knotted the game up at 41-41, forcing a timeout from the visitor’s bench as the home crowd roared to their feet.

The momentum was there, the confidence was there and the energy was there too. The only thing missing in the final four minutes for head coach Nick Yourkovich’s team was a closer’s mentality. After staying within two possessions of the Potters from the opening tip, the Huskies wouldn’t find the bottom of the net again, falling to the athletic East Liverpool group 46-41.

Harrison’s Bryson Kamarec earned game-high honors in both outings, leading all scorers with 25 points against the Bruins and 20 points against East Liverpool. At Brooke sophomore Lance Smith led the supporting cast with eight points. Senior Cooper Thompson added six, with fellow classmate Chaz Culbertson finishing with one triple and a bucket in the lane to turn in a five-point night. Brady Hyre (four) and Austin Dulkoski (two) rounded out the scoring across the river.

Brooke had a trio of double-digit scorers but none that would outpace Kamarec.

Kamarec poured in 10 of his 20 against the Potters in the third quarter, and he had an unexpected running mate to go along with him in the frame. Post-man Austin Dulkoski emerged as an impact player, putting 12 points on the board for a varsity career high. Eight of those came in the third quarter, a stretch that saw the Huskies outscore the Potters 18-14. Freshman Colson Crothers added five marks, with Brady Hyre (two) and Lance Smith (two) closing out the book on a low-scoring night for both teams.

A home date with Beaver Local (Dec. 16) and a road trip to Indian Creek (Dec. 19) are next on the slate for the Huskies.