Easterday surpasses 1,000-point milestone in rout of Milton
By Chris Bennett
Sports Correspondent
The Elkhorn Area High School boys basketball team played what coach Josh Skatrud called the squad’s best game of the season Jan. 13 in a 66-34 Southern Lakes Conference victory at home against Badger.
Skatrud said Elkhorn’s defense forced Badger into tough shots and a lot of turnovers, and said the Elks moved the ball as well they have all year on offense.
“A lot of guys contributed,” Skatrud said. “I really felt this was the first time we were clicking on all cylinders for a game.”
The Elks doubled up the Badgers in the first half and led 30-15 at halftime. Elkhorn outscored Badger 36-19 in the second half.
Alex Easterday led the Elks (6-5, 2-3 SLC) with 20 points. Ian Nowell and Sean Brady each scored 10 points for Elkhorn.
Quinten Lottig led Badger (2-7, 1-4 SLC) with 15 points.
Against Milton, Skatrud said the Elks played well on both ends of the floor.
“We would have had a bigger lead earlier, but missed some shots around the basket we usually make,” Skatrud said. “Our defense was able to frustrate them into shooting some pretty bad shots, and we went on some nice runs in the second half to get a big lead.”
Elkhorn won 58-37 Jan. 10 at Milton in a non-conference game, outscored the Red Hawks 35-19 in the second half and led 23-18 at halftime.
Easterday scored his 1,000th point against Milton, and was recognized for his accomplishments prior to the home game against Badger. Easterday scored a game-high 15 points against Milton. Luke Umnus added 12.
Ethan Hansing led Milton (1-11) with nine points.
Skatrud said the Elks worked on adjustments recently to get better at ball movement and working together on defense.
“Teams were starting to pack the lane to take away Alex and Ross (Ingersoll), so we tweaked our offense to open up the lane a little more,” Skatrud said. “Defensively, we made a commitment to getting back to some really basic, core values of communicating and getting in better position.”
The Elks play tonight at Burlington in a SLC game.
