Wildcats open season at Chapman with win over Sacred Heart

The El Dorado boys basketball team got off on the right foot in the Dickinson County Tournament Tuesday night defeating state ranked Sacred Heart 46-45.

“Our squad opened the season with a hard fought win over a pretty good Sacred Heart team (ranked 8th in the 3A pre-season KBCA rankings). Both teams played with good effort and exchanged the lead thoughout the contest,” said El Dorado head coach Gary Melcher.

The Wildcats used double-digit scoring from Travis House (14 points), Trevor Crain (13 points) and Jared Haury (12 points) to lead El Dorado to victory.

“Offensively, we had our moments that were sound, but as with most teams early in the season, we've got a ways to go to get where we want to be,” said Melcher.

The Wildcats led 23-22 at halftime and each team scored 23 points in the second half and El Dorado held on to the one-point lead for the win.

“I was pleased with our initial shot defense, although there were times that our rotation to finish defensive possessions wasn't what it needed to be. I thought we did a nice job, for the most part of dictating on defense,” said Melcher.

The Wildcats were 11-14 from the line while Sacred Heart was 11-18.

Sam Haines had 5 points and Aaron Riffel added two points to round out the El Dorado scoring.

El Dorado will be back in Chapman tonight to face host school Chapman who defeated Rossville 45-32 on Tuesday night.

“This was a good win for us, against a solid opponent. It also gave us a chance to see where we need to grow as a team,” said Melcher