Staff Photo by Jake Olson: Fairmont center Logan Junkermeier fends off a handful of Martin County West defenders during the second half of Monday night's contest in Trimont.

TRIMONT – Joe Long scanned the 2-3 zone while looking to make a decision. After a quick move to the basket, Long instinctively made a pass to the right corner of the court as he felt the defense begin to collapse. The recipient of the toss was Joseph Hackett, who calmly grabbed the ball before flicking a shot that ripped through the nylon.

Students and fans of the Cardinals began to cheer loudly after their team took a 66-23 lead over Martin County West in the Trimont gymnasium. Fairmont used its hot shooting and strong defensive execution to power past the Mavericks 80-31 on Monday night.

Cardinal head coach Jared Thompson’s team didn’t look like a group that dropped its past two contests in heartbreaking fashion.

Instead, the Cardinals looked like a squad gearing up to play some of its best basketball of the season before section play begins next week–an essential task for anyone trying to make a run at the state tournament.

“They are a resilient group,” coach Thompson said. “We’ve lost two games, so when you lose two in a row, you obviously feel it. But they were both competitive games where we were right there. We hope that will make us better, and I think it will.”

Four players reached double figures for Fairmont, with Hackett’s five outside shots charging his 15-point performance. The Cardinals finished the night connecting on 13 3-pointers.

Logan Junkermeier and Reed Johnson took advantage of the interior advantage by rattling in 14 and 11 points each on a combined 10 made field goals. Tavian Harvey provided a spark off the bench with 10 points and a handful of steals.

Maverick head coach Phillip Rotunda made his agenda known immediately on the defensive end after tossing out a tightly compacted zone in hopes of slowing down Junkermeier and Johnson. While the duo both finished with double figures, this forced Fairmont to string together good movement in the half-court in order to get a high-percentage look.

Hackett took advantage of this look early and often, camping in the left corner before knocking down a pair of early 3-pointers to give Fairmont an 8-0 lead.

Jordan Thompson helped charge 16 straight points for the Cardinals after knocking down a 3-pointer and finding Junkermeier down low for a quick finish. Harvey’s coast-to-coast layup ended the scoring run and gave Fairmont a 26-5 lead, forcing Rotunda to call his second timeout of the game.

“They played a pretty tight 2-3 zone to try and neutralize Logan and Reed as much as they could,” coach Thompson said. “As long as we kept touching it in there [the paint], I’m fine with those kick-out threes. We are a good shooting team.”

Lixon Forsberg helped cut the deficit to 21 points after an outside shot and a layup helped fuel 11 quick points for the Mavericks with two minutes left in the half. But a 3-pointer from Jalin Jackson and two Harvey free throws had Fairmont running into the locker room up 45-19.

Two immediate MCW buckets from Brycen Kettner and Caiden Loken again cut the deficit to 21 points to start the second half. However, that was as close as the game would get. A top-of-the-key 3-pointer from Brayden Williamson began what was a 20-0 scoring run that slowly put the contest completely out of reach.

Fairmont forced eight turnovers during the nine-minute stretch.

“We are pretty versatile on it [2-3 zone] now, we have different lineups, and it’s not just one look,” Thompson said. “It all starts with our depth. It allows us to really pressure the ball at all times. Pressure the rim at all times. That keeps us fresh.”

Isaac Laidig scored the final five Farimont points to earn the 80-31 victory. The Cardinals have off the text two days before finishing the regular season with a home contest against St. Peter on Thursday night. Tip-off will begin at 7:30 p.m.