HAMILTON — Hamilton High’s Kendell Pfeiffer-lee said it was all about staying positive Wednesday night.
“When you’re out there playing with positivity, good things happen,” the junior guard said.
Pfeiffer-lee scored a game-high 17 points, and the Big Blue snapped a 19-game losing streak with a 49-29 win over Greater Miami Conference rival Middletown at the Hamilton Activity Center.
Hamilton’s losing skid spanned all of 2020. The Big Blue beat Ross 60-18 on Dec. 30, 2019.
Hamilton, which sits at 1-6 overall and 1-5 in the GMC, moved out to an 8-1 lead after one quarter on Wednesday night. The Big Blue was able to hold the advantage the rest of the way.
“The bottom line is that we got ourselves a win tonight,” Hamilton coach Harry Phillips said. “We needed this one bad.
“We’re taking every opportunity right now,” Phillips added. “We can definitely get better at what we do. And offensively, I’m trying to get them to work on getting the best shot.”
Jayden Isaacs had 10 points and eight rebounds, while Alessa Harrison had five points and 14 rebounds for the Big Blue.
Leading the way for Middletown was junior Jayden Bingham, who notched a team-high 15 points. Freshman MarZeara Hunter (seven points, nine rebounds) also played a key factor for Middletown.
“There’s at times we can compete and play hard. It just comes in segments,” said Middies coach Terrence Toliver, who is in his first year at the helm. “For us, it’s two minutes, three minutes, play hard. Our girls are so young, and the game is so physical. So we’re trying to do the best we can to coach them through every single possession, every single minute.”
Both teams get back to action on Saturday at 1:45 p.m., with Hamilton taking on Lakota West at home and Middletown hosting Colerain.
Middletown 1 12 10 6 — 29
Hamilton 8 16 17 8 — 49
Middletown (0-8, 0-6 GMC) — Hunter 2 2 7, Bingham 3 9 15, Hogan 1 0 2, Calhoun 1 0 3, Dalton 1 0 2. Totals 8 11 29.
Hamilton (1-6, 1-5 GMC) — Harrison 2 0 5, Aldridge 4 0 9, Pfeiffer-lee 5 5 17, Isaacs 3 4 10, Moore 3 0 8. Totals 17 9 49.
3-Point Goals — M: Hunter 1, Calhoun 1; H: Moore 2, Pfeiffer-lee 2, Aldridge 1, Harrison 1.