The Hawks were stuck. And what began at the opening tip lasted through the final horn.

A dismal offensive performance — 12 of 49 from the field (24 percent), 1 of 16 from behind the 3-point arc (6 percent) and 4 of 9 at the free throw line (44 percent) — left 10th-ranked (Class 2A) South Hamilton no chance of hanging with always tough Van Meter on Coach Jim Marsh Court, as the Bulldogs raced out to a 22-point halftime lead and sailed to a 50-29 non-conference victory.

Van Meter (3-0), which has won its opening three games by an average of 38 points, received a big first half from Chris Schreck, who buried four 3-pointers and scored 14 points, and led wire-to-wire to hand South Hamilton (3-1) its first loss. But as good as the Bulldogs were offensively, particularly over the initial 16 minutes, it was their defensive effort that turned what was anticipated to be a close game into a rout.

Long on the interior and quick on the perimeter, Van Meter sat in a 2-3 zone throughout the contest and dared South Hamilton to shoot from long range. The Hawks tried to oblige early on, but they missed their first five shots and finished 1 of 14 in the first quarter, including 0 of 4 from behind the arc.

South Hamilton’s Carter Hewitt (right) scores from close range against Van Meter on Friday in Jewell. DFJ photo/Troy Banning

Confidence was an issue after the slow start, as it was the second straight game in which the Hawks had trouble against a zone defense.

“I know we can make shots from the outside, the kids have shown that in the past, but the kids have got to believe in themselves,” South Hamilton head coach Matt Juber said. “But the guys will stay with it, I’m not worried about it at this point.”

South Hamilton also failed to attack against Van Meter’s full-court press. Its guards didn’t have any issues beating the press, but they didn’t look to get to the basket once in the front court either. That allowed Van Meter to race back and settle into their zone.

“In the first half we came out kind of passive,” Juber said. “We knew they were going to press, but we didn’t counter at all with any aggression. That’s something that’s an old habit we sometimes fall into, and old habits show. In the second half, at times, we were more aggressive, but we’ve got to put together a four-quarter game. That’s the challenge.”

South Hamilton went the final 5:40 of the third quarter without a point and the drought extended to 6:51 of game time as Van Meter went on a 9-0 run to push its lead to 43-15. It wasn’t until the 5:29 mark of the final period that a Hawk other than Carter Hewitt scored in the second half.

DFJ photo/Troy Banning

Hewitt finished with a team-high 12 points to go along with six rebounds. Clayton Ubben added eight points and seven boards, and Austin Busch contributed six points. Kyler Hodnefield didn’t score, but did produce five rebounds, two steals and two assists.

South Hamilton made just two shots and netted only five points outside of the lane. Freddie Lewis canned the team’s lone 3-pointer from the right wing just before the buzzer to end the first half, and Busch knocked down a 15-foot jumper from the left elbow in the game’s final minute.

The Hawks actually outscored Van Meter 17-16 over the final 16 minutes, but the Bulldogs’ early surge, keyed by Schreck, made the second half moot.

“We kind of lost Schreck on the scouting report just a little bit,” Juber said. “We knew he was the guy they were going to play through early, but we didn’t communicate at all. We’ve got to continue to get better at that.”

Van Meter 50, South Hamilton 29

DFJ photo/Troy Banning

Friday at Jewell

Van Meter (3-0) — Carter Durfinger 2 1-1 5, Skyler Yazzie 1 2-2 4, Dustin Barth 0 0-0 0, Aydn Netten 0 0-0 0, Casey Trudo 1 3-4 6, Ben Gilliland 4 0-0 8, Chris Schreck 5 0-0 14, Michael Banks 0 0-0 0, Taylor Birks 4 0-0 9, Clark Fiala 2 0-0 4, Hunter Hinde 0 0-0 0. Totals: 19 6-7 50.

South Hamilton (3-1) — Freddie Lewis 1 0-0 3, Tycin Barkema 0 0-0 0, Carter Hewitt 5 2-6 12, Austin Busch 2 2-2 6, Landen Skartvedt 0 0-1 0, Kyler Hodnefield 0 0-0 0, Chase Friest 0 0-0 0, Clayton Ubben 4 0-0 8. Totals: 12 4-9 29.

Van Meter 12 22 7 9 — 50

S. Hamilton 4 8 3 14 — 29

3-point field goals — VM 6 (Schreck 4, Trudo, Birks); SH 1 (Lewis). Rebounds — SH 27 (Ubben 7, Hewitt 6, Hodnefield 5). Steals — SH 4 (Hodnefield 2). Assists — SH 4 (Hodnefield 2). Turnovers — SH 14. Team fouls — VM 11, SH 7. Fouled out — none.