Hawks Boys Basketball Team Extends Season with Regional Win

When you win just five of 23 games, you don’t have many options to choose from when attempting to identify a signature victory.

The kind of victory a coach and his players can point to in the offseason as a model for how to get things done in the future. The kind of victory that can generate momentum and keep it rolling during the “off” months.

On Tuesday, the , now the owner of a 5-18 record, picked up such a victory.

Junior Kyle Schahczinski's basket with 1.3 seconds propelled the Hustlin’ Hawks to a 48-46 win over host Oak Creek (8-13) in a WIAA Division 1 regional semifinal.

“That was a huge lift for us to come through and win a close one against a decent team,” first-year coach Jack Miller said. “Going out on a high note, our offseason effort and commitment, because of this, should be much better.”

That high note Miller referred to has resonated over the last month of the season. The Hawks with 13 straight losses, but have played .500 basketball (5-5) over the last 10 games, including Tuesday’s win. During that 10-game stretch, the Hawks lost four straight to end the regular season, but three of those defeats were by six points or less, including two two-point losses.

“It’s been a slow process, but they bought into the philosophy,” Miller said. “I’m really pleased with and satisfied with our progression.”

Progress was on display Tuesday at Oak Creek when the ninth-seeded Hawks took a second-quarter lead and held onto it during a tight fourth quarter. The eighth-seeded Knights tied the score at 46-46 with 39 seconds remaining when Miller called timeout and instructed his players to hold for the last shot.

Point guard Ricky Santiago drove the lane with about 8 seconds remaining and dished off to Schahczinski, who caught the ball on the block and scored the final two of his team-high 17 points.

Schahczinski added five 3-pointers, including three in the second quarter. He had been held to just four total points in the Hawks’ previous two games.

Santiago finished with 14 points and Sonnie Wilbert had 10 points and eight rebounds.

The Hawks’ reward for Tuesday’s win is a date at top-seeded Milwaukee Hamilton (17-5), an honorable mention in the Associated Press state rankings. The regional final is at 7 p.m. Friday at Hamilton.

“We’re going to try to be methodical and value each possession and elongate each possession to shorten the game,” Miller said. “They’ll come out and trap us and force the issue, but hopefully we’ll execute that game plan and be around at the end to steal one.”