By SCOTT NOVAK
Dowagiac Daily News

First-year Dowagiac coach Danum Hunt is still waiting for his squad to put it all together.
Saturday night against rival Lakeshore, the Chieftains did some good things and certainly played better than they did the night before at Three Rivers.

But in the end, the Lancers pulled out a 51-44 victory over Dowagiac, which hit just 9-of-20 free throw attempts.

The loss dropped the Chieftains to 4-10 on the season. Lakeshore, which defeated Mattawan on Friday night, is now 10-5 on the year.

Dowagiac led 10-7 after one quarter of play and 20-17 at the intermission.

Lakeshore fought back and took a 30-29 advantage to the fourth quarter.

In the final eight minutes, the Lancers tossed in 21 points compared to just 15 for the Chieftains.

Hayden Davis had a game-high 19 points to lead the Lancers, who did not place another player in double digits.

Dontel Highsmith finished with 13 points for Dowagiac. Tremail Butcher added 11 and Darius Wilson nine.

LAKESHORE 51
T.J. Moneta 0 3-4 3; Adrian Tatrault 1 2-3 4; Colin McKey 0 0-0 0; Lee Myers 2 0-0 5; Jordan Kauffman 3 2-4 8; Joshua Lange 2 0-0 6; Loren Johnson 0 2-2 2; Hayden Davis 6 7-8 19; Ryan Avery 1 2-2 4. TOTALS: 15 18-23 51
DOWAGIAC 44
Dontel Highsmith 3 7-10 13; Troy Butcher 0 0-0 0; Andrew Cripe 1 0-0 2; Jason Turner 1 0-0 2; Chris Craft 0 0-2 0; Tremail Butcher 4 0-0 11; D.J. Hunt 0 0-0 0; Pierre Reed 0 0-0 0; Darius Wilson 4 1-2 9; Damone Huff 2 1-2 5; Cody Cox 1 0-4 2. TOTALS: 16 9-20 44

Lakeshore 7 17 30 51
Dowagiac 10 20 29 44
3-point baskets: Lakeshore 3 (Lange 2, Myers), Dowagiac 3 (Tre. Butcher). Total fouls: Lakeshore 17, Dowagiac 17. Fouled out: None. Varsity records: Lakeshore 10-5, Dowagiac 4-10

Dowagiac…49
Three Rivers…63
For one quarter Friday night, the Dowagiac boys’ basketball team was right there with the host Wildcats.

But over the final three quarters the Chieftains had no answers and Three Rivers rolled to a 63-49 Wolverine Conference win.

Leading just 17-16 heading to the second quarter, the Wildcats outscored the Chieftains 19-4 to open up a 36-20 halftime advantage.

Dowagiac managed just six points in the third quarter and trailed 43-26 entering the final stanza.

The Chieftains (4-9, 4-8 Wolverine) did play better in the final quarter, getting the lead down to eight points at one point.

Dowagiac poured in 23 fourth quarter points, but gave up 20 to the Wildcats, who ended up with a 17-point victory.

Aaron Spence scored a game-high 18 points to lead Three Rivers. Alex Foster and Dan Shutes both finished with nine points.

Darius Wilson led the Chieftains with 11 points. Tremail and Troy Butcher added seven and six points respectively, while Jason Turner also netted six points.

DOWAGIAC 49
Tremail Butcher 7, Troy Butcher 6, Cody Cox 2, Christopher Craft 5, Andrew Cripe 2, Dontel Highsmith 3, Damone Huff 4, Pierre Reed 3, Jason Turner 6, Darius Wilson 11. TOTALS: 18 6-8 49
THREE RIVERS 63
Aaron Spence 18, Thomas O’Dell 5, Alex Foster 9, Kyle Lokar 8, Isiah Bosma 4, Dan Shutes 9, Drew Shutes 7, Brandon Wilson 3. TOTALS: 21 15-26 63
Dowagiac 16 20 26 49
Three Rivers 17 36 43 63
Total fouls: Three Rivers 14, Dowagiac 21. Fouled out: None. Varsity records: Dowagiac 4-9, 4-8 Wolverine; Three Rivers 8-6, 6-6 Wolverine