Bulldogs basketball

Howe senior guard Ayden Norton drives to the bucket in the second half against Bonham. Michelle Carney/Howe Enterprise.

Howe at Leonard Howe vs. Bonham

The Howe Bulldogs (7-12, 1-3) got their first district win Friday night at home with a 45-43 win over Bonham. The win took the bitter taste from the mouth of a 61 -49 loss at Leonard earlier in the week.

Howe’s win was much more dominating than the 45-43 final score indicated as the Dogs led 43 -21 in the early stages of the third period. A big bucket by Colton Thurman with a minute left gave Howe a 45-41 lead and a little breathing room. On the other end of the floor, Caiden Harmon made the defensive play of the game stopping Tanner Reeves from shooting his fifth successful 3-pointer which would have given Bonham the lead. A forced turnover gave the ball back to Howe with 1.9 seconds remaining with a 2-point lead. Austin Haley used his quarterback skills to launch a deep pass to Harmon to run out the clock and secure the win.

Head Coach Mike Segleski said that the win takes some pressure off of them.

“If we were going to have a shot going forward, we had to have tonight,” said Segleski. “We showed our youth a little bit letting most of a 21-point lead slip away, but going forward we’re going to be a lot better in that area.”

Segleski praised the play of Thurman and said he’s a highcharacter guy who is a winner.

Cameron Lankford had the hot hand and led Howe with 11 points, while Luke Lopez followed with 10. Other scorers were Haley (9), Harmon (7), Jake Fabacher (3), Ethan Lopez (2), Thurman (2), and Ayden Norton (1).

In the loss at Leonard, Howe was led by Noah Campbell with nine points. Others were Luke Lopez (8), Kolby Taylor (7), Haley (7), Ethan Lopez (6), Thurman (4), Fabacher (3), Norton (3), and Harmon (2).

Howe will continue district play Tuesday at home against Whitewright.

A passionate Mike Segleski pumps his fist at the final buzzer against Bonham. Michelle Carney/Howe Enterprise.