Esko’s basketball program was Haugen’s ‘first love’

Esko’s basketball program was Haugen’s ‘first love’

ESKO — More than a dozen years ago, a young Sam Haugen sat on the sideline watching his older brother, Cale, play basketball. It was just one Saturday morning, but with each passing week, Haugen found himself getting more interested in the sport. It didn’t take long for him to work his way into drills and begin competing against a group of older kids. “He usually sat on the side or would be in the drills, and soon he worked himself in the scrimm…