Bartlett's bench shines in win over Elgin

With Bartlett building a big early lead Tuesday, the Hawks' bench players saw plenty of action, and they took full advantage of the extra playing time.

Bartlett reserves scored 35 points, outscoring the Hawk starters as well as their opponent, Elgin, in a 68-22 win at Chesbrough Field House.

Kelton McEwen led all scorers with 14 points. Will Poulopoulos scored 13 off the bench, and Nathan Scearce scored 8. Conrad Luczynski had 6 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks, and 2 assists in less than 12 minutes for the Hawks (6-3, 3-1 Upstate Eight).

Elgin didn't score until 2:50 remained in the first quarter, by which time Bartlett led 15-0. The Hawks extended the lead to 21-5 after one quarter and 42-13 by halftime.

"We've just got to always stay ready," said Poulopoulos, who posted a season high. "We've got to take the opportunity when we get it. Everyone just came in to bring it today."

"I was really impressed with how well the bench played," said Bartlett coach Jim Wolfsmith. "Everybody on that bench went out and played great defense. Offensively, the ball was moving. Really impressed with them."

Defensively, the Hawks forced 26 turnovers while holding the Maroons to 15 points through three quarters.

Offensively, there weren't too many bright spots for Elgin, but Izaiah Cheperka scored all 7 of his points in the fourth quarter to lead the Maroons (3-8, 0-4).

For the Hawks, the game provided a chance to give the starters a rest while also working on a few things.

"This was the kind of game where you want to get things done," Wolfsmith said. "There were things we wanted to accomplish defensively. I thought we did a great job with what we wanted to do defensively. Offensively, we wanted to run certain things and get certain looks. We did a great job with that."

Keegan Kunzer and Ethan Hedeen each scored 5 points off the bench for Bartlett as all 12 Hawks who saw action scored.