By Taylor Penn

Staff Writer

Bells 59, Howe 42

The Howe Bulldogs got behind by double digits in the first quarter and, despite a valiant effort, were never able to overcome that deficit as they suffered a 17-point loss on the road against the Bells Panthers. It was a reversal of fortune as the Bulldogs previously beat Bells 65-39 when the Panthers came to Howe to open up district play.

Bells took control early as it started the contest on a 21-6 run behind its senior big man and excellent shooting from the perimeter. The Bulldogs would not go quietly into the night, however, as they battled back to cut the deficit to just six points with 1:29 left in the first half. Alex Torres hit a three in the last minute to close the gap as the two teams headed into the locker rooms with Bells clinging to a 31-28 lead. Bells proved to be too much to handle for the Bulldogs in the second half, as the Panthers outscored Howe, 28-14. Torres was second in scoring for the Bulldogs with 12 points. He also contributed seven rebounds and three assists. John Talley led Howe with 13 points and also grabbed 12 rebounds.

Bells 24 7 15 13 59

Howe 12 16 6 8 42

Howe 60, Tom Bean 45

On Friday, the Tom Bean Tomcats traveled to Howe to take on the Bulldogs. It wasn’t a successful trip for the Tomcats as Howe walked away with a 14-point win.

Howe was dominant against the Tomcats, outscoring the visitors in each and every quarter of play. Torres put on quite a performance, scoring a game-high 22 points while contributing eight assists and eight rebounds. Talley also played well in the win with 14 points and 10 rebounds, another double-double for the Howe big man. Fulenchek was close behind with 13 points of his own. He also added five assists. Howe will play on Friday against district foe Gunter. The game will be played in Howe with tipoff slated for 8:30 p.m.

Howe 14 12 17 17 60

TB 10 8 12 15 45