After a string of seven wins, the Stuart Broncos's good fortune finally ran out on Thursday. They were just a bucket shy of victory and fell 50-49 to St. Mary. Stuart was given a dose of their own medicine in this game as St. Mary's apparently hadn't forgotten their defeat the last time these teams played back in January of 2023.
Several Broncos players turned in solid performances, despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Hunter Tubbs, who dropped a double-double on 16 points and 11 rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Drew Schmaderer, who scored six points along with seven rebounds and five steals.
St. Mary's found their leader in underclassman Gage Hedstrom, who scored 24 points along with eight rebounds and two steals. Hedstrom has been hot recently, having posted 15 or more points the last four times he's played. Ben Barlow was another key contributor, scoring 12 points along with three steals.
Stuart's defeat ended a five-game streak of away wins and brought them to 11-4. As for St. Mary's, their victory was their 11th straight at home, which pushed their record up to 11-3.
Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Stuart will get a bit of extra time to process the loss as their next game is a ways off. They'll take on Valentine at 5:00 p.m. on Monday. St. Mary's will have some time to savor their win since their next game is a little ways off: they'll take on Chambers/Wheeler Central at 5:30 p.m. on Monday.
