Twenty-four hours later, the Big Blue played like a team on a mission Tuesday night at Wade E. Miller Arena, shooting their way past the Middletown Middies 73-58 to wash away the taste of a tough loss at Oak Hills.
Hamilton (11-9, 7-7 Greater Miami Conference) scored more points in the first half than it managed all night Monday, racing to a 26-15 lead after one quarter and never letting the Middies get any closer the rest of the way.
“Last night (Monday) we just got flat-out whooped in every aspect,” Big Blue coach Jake Turner said. “We had to flush it away real quick and find a way to win tonight. I was proud of our guys responding because we were obviously very frustrated. We had to call some guys out and say, ‘This isn’t our standard, this isn’t our culture.’ And they answered.”
Mills supplied the loudest answer. He poured in a game-high 24 points, knocking down 6 of 11 from 3-point range as Hamilton finished 13 of 26 from deep.
“When we’re hitting shots it opens up everything,” Mills said.
“First half we were confident, we kept getting open looks and that opens the lane for everybody.”
Jordon Johnson-Perdomo added 18 points and seven assists, orchestrating an offense that shot 48 percent overall. Elijah Jones buried five 3s on his way to 17 points, while Quinton Simms controlled the paint with 12 rebounds.
“When you make 13 threes you’re going to be in good shape,” Turner said. “Jordan did a great job finding guys, Knox was lights out, and Quinton may not have scored much but 12 rebounds is huge for us.”
Hamilton set the tone early, hitting four 3-pointers in the opening quarter to build a double-digit cushion. The Big Blue stretched the margin to 40-24 by halftime and pushed it to 60-43 entering the fourth.
Middletown (1-13, 1-12 GMC) made several runs behind Elijah Harris (15 points) and Keith Daniels (12 points, four assists), but could never slow Hamilton’s perimeter attack or keep the Big Blue off the offensive glass. Hamilton finished with 14 offensive boards to Middletown’s nine.
“It’s tough to win giving up 13 3-pointers and 14 offensive rebounds,” Middletown coach Bill Edwards said. “Hamilton played a great game. They made shots and attacked the glass. We just have to figure things out and continue to work.”
JoJo Ward added 10 points for the Middies and Cale Curtis chipped in nine with six rebounds, yet Middletown committed 16 turnovers and shot just 42 percent.
Turner mixed defenses to keep Daniels out of the paint, using stretches of zone after primarily playing man this season.
“They’re a tough matchup because they’ve got two bigs,” Turner said. “We mixed it up more than we wanted, just to slow them down a little bit.”
Hamilton’s victory kept hopes of a winning season alive and provided the emotional reset the Big Blue needed after shooting just 22% in their 64-31 loss to the Highlanders the night before.
“Our biggest goal is a winning season,” Mills said. “We’ve got to be tougher than the teams we play and come ready every night.”
“I had no clue what team was going to show up,” Turner added. “But they showed who we are tonight.”
Both teams get back to GMC action on Friday. Hamilton hosts Sycamore, while Middletown travels to Mason.
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