HRV, TD tied for second in IMC boys standings

Meantime, The Dalles swept its three league games last week, including a win in the Gorge rivalry contest against Hood River (see related story this issue). Following a 59-49 home win Feb. 5 over the No. 18 ranked Crook County Cowboys, the Hawks solidified their spot in the standings behind leader Redmond. The fourth-ranked Panthers take a seven-game win streak into the second half of league play.

The Hawks snapped a three-game losing streak with a 59-45 home win Feb. 1 over the Pendleton Buckaroos. The trio of sophomore Andre Niko (career-high 20 points), sophomore Henry Begay (16 points) and junior Styles DeLeon (15 points) helped lead the Hawks to a come-from behind win. The Dalles trailed 28-23 at halftime and then outscored Pendleton 36-17 in the second half to get its first IMC win.

Hood River also earned a come-from-behind victory against Pendleton last week, 73-67. The Eagles trailed 56-47 entering the fourth quarter but outscored the Buckaroos 26-11 to pull out the win on Friday. The HRV comeback overshadowed a 42-point scoring performance from Pendleton’s Greyson Sams.

HRV Coach Christopher Dirks said his team continues work its way back into a consistent flow after weather- and COVID-related disruptions.

“We really were just getting our feet back under us (two weeks ago),” he said. “It was too bad that we had to play Redmond coming off such a crazy stretch, but it is what it is. I think we learned a lot about ourselves and responded well … against Ridgeview (a 59-50 home win Feb. 1).

“Each game is a battle, and we have to approach it that way to get where we want to be. Moving forward, we are taking it one day at a time.”

The same is true for The Dalles, which used a 10-5 run, capped by Niko’s three-pointer from the corner, to take control of its game last week against Crook County. DeLeon scored a game-high 24 points, including consecutive baskets to give him team the lead for good with half a quarter to play.

“My legs were a little tired and I never had an opportunity to get any dunks today (versus Crook County),” said DeLeon. “We played a little sloppy early in the game and we had a slow start, but then we came back and did our thing and pulled it out at the end.

“It feels good to have a three-game win streak. After losing a few games earlier in the season when we had some injuries and guys out with COVID, we’ve got our rhythm back and now we’re all feeling pretty good. … When we’re all hot, we’re a scary team to play against and we’re looking good.”

The Dalles Coach Greg Cummings said, “It’s fun to see the fruits of our labor finally come together and the kids are having fun, and they’re playing hard. We had another game with a slow start, and it was kind of ugly in the first quarter (versus Crook County). It was just a gut check time and the kids dug deep and they grinded out another win.”

The Hawks were seeking to get a fourth straight win in Tuesday’s road match-up against Redmond and the Eagles had hopes of getting a win at Crook County Tuesday (results were after the printed edition deadline).

Friday’s The Dalles at Hood River contest begins at 6:30 p.m.

“Right now, every game is a must win and we approach every single game like it’s a playoff game,” said Cummings. “We need to get first or second place, because if we’re third, then we’ll probably have to play the No. 1-ranked team in the playoffs, which would be really difficult. We want to get first or second place and that’s our goal this year that’s well within our reach. We like playing Hood River and we’re going to have another fun battle of the Gorge on Friday.”