By Khalem Caldwell

Coming into Thursday’s game on January 30th, the Hawks had an overall record of 10-8, and a conference record of 4-6. The team faced off against the William Jewel  Cardinals who had an overall record of 8-10, and a conference record of 3-7. William Jewel trails Quincy by two spots in conference standings.

Quincy won the opening tipoff and scored fast off a basket from, redshirt junior, Tanner Stuckman. However, William Jewel wouldn’t be affected by an early score, as sophomore, Robbie Hanson, scored a three-point field goal on William’s Jewel next possession. 

William Jewel took early control of the game, going on an 11-5 run, which forced head coach, Ryan Hellenthal, to use an early timeout. As the team broke it down in their huddle, they seemed poised and ready to battle.

With the help of a restless crowd, the Hawks managed to tie the game off a three-pointer by Stuckman. The game was tied at 25 a piece with 6:32 left in the first half.

The Cardinal’s later went on a 14-7 run, with junior Jackson Golightly, scoring a buzzer beating layup to end the half. The score was 39-32, favoring William Jewel.

The second half looked to be a game changer for the Hawks. The half started with a hard foul committed by William Jewel’s Mason Alexander. The crowd erupted in boos and taunts directed at the refs and opposing players. Quincy’s Eysan Wiley was able to knock down both free throws.

With 13:34 left in the second half, the Hawks took the lead with a basket by senior, Aziz Fadika. This made the score 51-50, which was Quincy’s first lead of the game since the opening basket.

William Jewel went on a cold spell, scoring only 6 points in 8 minutes. When, William Jewel wasn’t able to buy a basket, the rim seemed to expand for Quincy. In those same 9 minutes, the hawks were able to score 15 points, and take their largest lead of the night. The score was 66-56 with 5 minutes left in the second half.

Willam Jewel wouldn’t lay down and take a loss without fighting. After a timeout, the cardinals regained composure and were only down 6 points with 1:30 left on the clock.

While the game was winding down it seemed the scoreboard malfunctioned, saying the Cardinals were up by 2 points. This didn’t sit well with QU fans, players, and coaches as everyone in the arena noticed. It was sooned brought to the referees attention and changed.

Quincy student, Collin Otta-Chatman, was among the many fans upset by the refs calls all night.

“I don’t understand how they’re missing easy calls,” Olla-Chatman said. “The game has been chippy and intense since the beginning.”

The Hawks eventually pulled out the win, with a score of 76-65. The Hawks an impressive 54% from the field, and 42% from beyond three point range. Stuckman led all scorers in the game with 24 points, 12 of those points coming from behind the arc.

“This was a big time game,” Stuckman said. “The team came in focus! My mindset was to come in and help the team anyway I could.”