Men's basketball: Harper stays positive after loss

Harper's men's basketball team dropped its fourth straight game 94-63 on Saturday to St. Louis Community College (Mo.) at the Sports and Wellness Center.

But the vibe in the locker room remained positive.

"We are starting to put things together," said first-year Hawks coach Sean Stochl, who said his squad was still learning to play at the college level.

Joe Gatziolis, who said he was nervous in last week's season opener against Kishwaukee, showed no signs of anxiety on Saturday while finishing with a team-high 9 points.

He is nearly fully recovered from a fractured thumb that kept him out of early season workouts.

Turnovers once again hurt the Hawks, who committed a total of 30, including 17 in the first 20 minutes. The Archers (2-0) led 50-32 at intermission.

Harper shot 48 percent and better number showed up later in the game.

"In the second half, we put runs together," Gatziolis said. "We put our egos down."

"We had great things happen," Stochl said about the improved second-half offense.