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STOW, Ohio– A defensive switch seemed to disrupt the rhythm of the Hudson Explorers, creating a slew of opportunities that the Bulldogs took advantage of during their 54-35 win over Hudson Tuesday night.
“One game at a time,” Stow coach David Close said about how he feels about his team closing out the regular season. “We just want to continue getting better.”
Hudson got off to a good start Tuesday afternoon as they distributed the ball well and found the open guys near the paint throughout the first quarter. In fact, the Explorers took a 14-7 lead with two minutes left in the first quarter and Jayden Carlton fought through contact for a bucket near the rim.
Hudson out to an early 14-7 lead after this Jayden Carlton bucket. @SportsKee1 @carlton_jayden pic.twitter.com/K1sq7vD3N5
— Michael Trivisonno (@MichaelTriv_) February 7, 2024
From there, the Explorers got the best of Stow senior big man Reece Raymond-Smith, as he helped kickstart an offensive outburst for the Bulldogs. With the Explores holding on to a 14-11 lead after the first quarter, a zone defense from the Bulldogs took and the Explorers struggled.
With Raymond-Smith getting open 3-point looks constantly on the other end, he was able to knock down a few in a row that started to cause the Explorers troubles. The 6-foot-6 forward scored 13 of Stow’s 15 second-quarter points, ending the first half with a game-high 19 points to help lead his team to a 26-21 lead at halftime.
The Bulldogs ended the final 10 minutes of the first half on a 19-7 run.
HALFTIME: Stow 26, Hudson 21.@ReeceRaySmith has a game-high 19 points at the break—with 13 of them coming in the second quarter. @SportsKee1 @StowBoysHoops pic.twitter.com/qi65HpkqV5
— Michael Trivisonno (@MichaelTriv_) February 7, 2024
I think it disrupted the rhythm of the game a little bit,” Close said regarding the switch up from zone to man defense. “This was a game where we felt like we wanted to change and disrupt their rhythm a little bit and I thought we did that.”
The second half was no different for the Bulldogs as they kept their lead for the remainder of the game, including a double-digit lead for the majority of the second half. Senior Tyler Fleishour knocked down two 3-pointers for the Bulldogs in the third quarter, a quarter where Fleishour almost outscored the Explorers by himself.
A slew of stops defensively allowed the Bulldogs to test its outside shot as four different players knocked down a 3-pointer during the win.
“We strung some stops together in the second half and we were able to affect the outcome after that,” Close explained.
Raymond-Smith finished with a game-high 27 points during the win. He sunk four 3-pointers on a night where he made the Explorers pay no matter where he was around the perimeter and near the paint.
“He’s getting a lot of special attention from our opponents, they’re hounding him,” Close said. “Give our kids credit, they set some nice screens and Reece is really good at using screens and creating space. He doesn’t need a lot of space and time to get his shot off and he’s worked on his craft and he’s pretty good at it.”
For the Explorers, Jayden Carlton ended the night with a team-high 10 points followed by 9 points from Nolan Yanak.
