Home sweet home for Harper men

The Sports and Wellness Center has been a safe haven of sorts for the Harper College men's basketball team (2-2) this season.

In two games on their familiar tartan court this season, the Hawks have walked away victorious both times - including a 61-59 victory over McHenry Community College (0-3) on Tuesday.

After the teams combined to shoot 20-for-66 from the field in the first half, first-year Harper coach Justin Welke chose to see the glass as half-full.

"I thought our defense was great," Welke said. "It is not always easy to adapt to a new system. It takes time.

"We are a group of guys who are trying to find an identity."

Three players who may have figured that out Tuesday were Robert Hudson, Marcus Gatlin and Jamal Sherman, as the trio accounted for 54 percent of the Harper scoring.

"(I) was trying to be aggressive," said Hudson (Conant) said of his 12-point effort.

Sherman (Maine West) struggled early but scored 8 of his 10 points in the second half, and Gatlin finished with 11 points.

Coach David Pettit's team seemed to find its shooting touch late, as the Scots shot 56.5 percent in the second half. McHenry used a 7-0 run to close within 43-39. But the Hawks answered by scoring 6 of the next 8 points.

Hudson realizes Harper can improve.

"I don't think we played our best basketball," he said. "We did enough to get the win."