Bowman boys roll over Hammond

HAMMOND | After Wednesday's 106-63 win for Times No. 2 Bowman over Hammond, one thing is for sure:; the Eagles can fill a box score.

On its way to passing the century mark, Bowman hit 43 shots and grabbed 48 rebounds while stealing the ball 22 times.

"We wanted to apply some pressure, work on the inside game, work on the outside game," coach Marvin Rea said.

DeJuan Marrero led the charge, dropping 27 points and pulling down 15 rebounds for the Eagles.

"We wanted to let DeJuan get loose," Rea said. "DeJuan's been facing double teams and we just figured we'd give him a change to have a little fun."

Bowman didn't jump out in front as early as expected. The Wildcats kept the lead to less than five points for most of the first quarter.

"At halftime I really chewed them out," Rea said. "You have to be mentally prepared to play any team and you can't underestimate anyone."

The Eagles (9-7) committed 13 fouls in the first half and were in heavy rotation. Senior Elijah Ray didn't see the court in the opening frame and was left on the bench for the vast majority of the second half.

"We wanted to get some younger guys in, get them minutes," Rea said. "Elijah's been nursing an injury and he kind of tells me when he wants to play. We're not going to win any postseason games right now so we're going to rest as much as possible."

Bowman's size and athleticism won out as the game progressed, though, and the game was quickly out of reach.

Hammond (7-9) stayed with Bowman for the first quarter, mostly on the back of Michael Kirkendall. The junior forward had 11 points in the first half and finished with 14 before fouling out early in the third quarter. Justin King added 15 points and seven rebounds for Bowman.