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St. Edmond 70, Hampton-Dumont 62

St. Edmond - Nick Clark 6-15 11-12 24, Connor Mulholland 2-5 1-2 7, Luke Becker 6-6 0-2 12, Anthony Flattery 5-7 4-5 14, Neil Flattery 4-9 0-1 9, David Flattery 2-3 0-0 4, David Tann 0-1 0-0 0, Thomas Kesten 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 25-46 16-22 70.

Hampton-Dumont - Jordan Brass 2-10 0-0 4, Dylan Reents 2-6 2-2 6, Steven Grotzinger 8-18 3-5 20, Jordan McLennan 2-3 0-0 6, Ethan Veit 6-8 3-5 15, Slater Johansen 0-1 2-2 2, Evan Voelker 2-3 1-2 5, Mason Everman 1-1 0-0 2, Casey Heilskov 0-0 2-4 2, Josh Benning 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 23-50 13-20 62.

Quarter scores: Tied 14-14, St. Edmond led 32-29, 45-44. Three-point goals: St. Edmond 4-16 (Clark 1-7, Mulholland 2-4, Neil Flattery 1-4, David Flattery 0-1). Hampton-Dumont 3-11 (Brass 0-4, Reents 0-2, Grotzinger 1-2, McLennan 2-3. Total rebounds: St. Edmond 26, Hampton-Dumont 24. Turnovers: St. Edmond 16, Hampton-Dumont 11. Total fouls: St. Edmond 21, Hampton-Dumont 21.

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St. Edmond's new look boys hoops squad continued to grow up in a hurry here Friday.

Despite receiving another major scare, the Gaels (2-0 overall, 2-0 NCC) escaped with a tense 70-62 triumph over North Central Conference foe Hampton-Dumont (1-2, 0-2) inside the SEHS gym.

With the victory, the Gaels - who needed overtime to edge Algona (47-39) in their season opener Tuesday - extended their league win streak to 31 straight games, stretching back to January of 2008. St. Edmond also notched its 38th consecutive home victory in the process.

"After scouting (Hampton-Dumont), we knew they would be a tough matchup for us," said Gael head coach Adolph Kochendorfer. "They're awfully athletic and long inside, which makes them so difficult to guard.

"I was proud of the composure we showed late, though, because close wins can only help our confidence as the year moves on."

Both squads went toe-to-toe early, before the green and white started the second quarter on a 10-2 spurt - capped by five consecutive points from sophomore point guard Nick Clark.

"I thought Nick did a nice job of directing our offense," Kochendorfer said. "He's pretty slick with the ball in his hands."

The pesky Bulldogs kept answering, however, as a pair of Dylan Reents free throws sliced the deficit to just three (32-29) at the intermission.

"At times, we had some defensive lapses that hurt," said Kochendorfer. "We have to become more consistent on that end of the floor."

Junior Anthony Flattery's two makes from the charity stripe gave SEHS a slim 45-41 advantage in the last minute of the third period, but a clutch buzzer-beating triple by Hampton-Dumont's Jordan McLennan abruptly shifted all the positive energy back to the visitors.

Knotted at 56-56 in the fourth, the Gaels used six key points from Clark down the stretch to deliver the knockout blow to the Bulldogs.

"I thought our bench stepped up and played quite well," Kochendorfer said. "We had several different guys that made contributions."

The Gaels shot an impressive 54.3 percent (25 of 46) from the field. Clark ignited St. Edmond with a career-high 24 points and 10 assists.

Flattery (14) and senior Luke Becker (12) both scored in double digits as well for the Gaels. Flattery added six rebounds.

Steven Grotzinger paced Hampton-Dumont with 20 points, while teammate Ethan Veit delivered 15 points.

St. Edmond travels to Eagle Grove on Tuesday for a girl/boy doubleheader.

Contact Josh Meyer at (515) 573-2141, or by e-mail at sports@messengernews.net