St. Marys' Blake Dingledine drives to the basket as St. Henry's Owen Zimmerman (13) defends.
ST. MARYS - St. Marys was hanging with St. Henry at halftime Tuesday, but the Redskins didn't let them hang around in the second half.
Jack Huelsman scored a game-high 20 points, Landon Schwartz netted 15, and Brayden Heath added 10 to help St. Henry claim a 53-33 victory at Grand Lake Health System Court.
The Redskins led 28-22 at halftime, but Schwartz came out hot in the third quarter with his 3-pointer and breakaway dunk sparking an 18-9 run that put the game out of reach.
"I thought our captains led us tonight," St. Henry coach Eric Rosenbeck said. "I thought Jack Huelsman played a really, really strong basketball game. Brayden Heath did as well. They made a lot of plays. Everyone else kind of followed their lead."
St. Henry's Jack Huelsman (right) goes up for a layup as St. Marys' Aiden Meinerding defends.
The Redskins improved to 2-2. The Roughriders, who trailed by only six points at halftime, fell to 1-6. Their 19 turnovers played a big part in the loss.
"We're in every ballgame, then all of a sudden we have those timely turnovers," St. Marys coach Tim Barga said. "We're right there within five or six points and all of a sudden it just goes to 15 quick. I give credit to St. Henry. They weren't hitting those 3-pointers the last couple of games. Sooner or later, they're going to."
St. Henry went 3-for-3 shooting from behind the arc to start the game, taking an 11-8 lead after one frame. Heath hit the two from deep during that stretch. The second trey by Landon Schwartz made it 14-8 Redskins early in the second quarter. The lead was stretched to 10 points for the first time with four minutes left in the half. The Roughriders used a late surge to reel it back to six points, 28-22, before halftime.
Schwartz started off the second half with his third triple and then followed with a breakaway dunk after getting a steal. A 3 by Huck Hertenstein gave St. Marys brief life, but St. Henry followed with a 9-0 run to officially take control.
"In the second half, we were able to really get some stops on defense and disrupt. That's who we need to be," Rosenbeck said. "Letting up 37 points in a half like we did the last game can never happen to this team. We're too athletic. We're too long. We're too proud to let that happen again. Give St. Marys credit. I thought that they were physical and got to the glass really well against us."
The Redskins finished 20-for-39 shooting and 6-for-17 from long range. The Roughriders went 14-for-38 shooting and 4-of-12 from 3. Cayden Geiger was the lone Roughrider in double figures with 12 points.
St. Marys is back on the court Friday, hosting New Bremen. St. Henry returns to action Saturday, hosting Anna.
St. Marys' Huck Hertenstein (23) defends the shot attempt of St. Henry's Will Speck.