Hounds run at BHS falls short

Nailed

We talked about being the hammer and the nail, and the last 12 minutes of the game we were the nail. Calls didn’t go our way, other things didn’t go our way. We started to complain. One mistake leads to the next.”

Ryan Wilson, FMHS Boys Head Coach

FORT MADISON - Ryan Wilson challenged his Fort Madison High School boys basketball team.
Be the hammer in Friday’s Southeast Conference game against Burlington, or be the nail.
The Bloodhounds were both, but the “nail” version came at the worst time, as the Grayhounds pulled away in the second half for a 63-46 win.
A 14-1 run by Burlington (10-3 overall, 4-1 conference) brushed away the Bloodhounds (3-7, 1-5), who had taken a 28-27 lead with 5:21 to play when Leif Boeding hit a 3-pointer.
“We came out and we played pretty hard,” Wilson said. “We talked about being the hammer and the nail, and the last 12 minutes of the game we were the nail. Calls didn’t go our way, other things didn’t go our way. We started to complain. One mistake leads to the next.”
The Bloodhounds had fight right away. They were down 13-6 at the end of the first quarter, but came back to lead 20-17 with 3:08 to play and trailed just 23-22 at halftime.
Fort Madison tied the game at 25 on a 3-pointer from Carson Rashid, and two minutes later Boeding hit his shot for the lead.
Burlington’s run was started by Merquiche Lewis Jr., who had six points in the stretch as the Grayhounds started to run away.
Fort Madison closed to within 41-34 early in the fourth quarter, then BHS took over.
“We played a good first half, and a good first couple of minutes in the third quarter,” Wilson said. “But the last 9-10 minutes of the game, we were soft, especially in the fourth quarter. We talked about it before the game, Burlington puts their shoes on one foot at a time like us. They play basketball, just like we do. They’re a little bigger, faster and stronger. They were the hammer and we were the nail.”
Lewis led the Grayhounds with 27 points.
“The kid’s a stud,” Wilson said. “He can do so many things. He got a lot of points in transition, a lot of points off rebounds. The kid works hard. He’s a handful.”
Boeding led Fort Madison with 13 points.
The Bloodhounds play at Holy Trinity Saturday.
“We’ve got to build some momentum,” Wilson said. “We talked about that the other day. Burlington’s a rival. Holy Trinity’s rival. Next Friday we host Keokuk, that’s a rivalry game. We’ve got a whole week of rivalry games. We have to be ready.”