BASKETBALL: PCHS escapes ugly fourth quarter with a win
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[Continuing to receive every team's best shot at the Benton Invitational Tournament, Pinckneyville fought off another threat to their six-year-plus winning streak at the B.I.T. on Wednesday night, slipping past Sesser-Valier 54-48 to improve to 2-0 in this year's event.
"We played good for three quarters," PCHS head coach Bob Waggoner said. "I thought we guarded very well, we followed our game plan extremely well, and then played not-very-intelligent basketball for the final eight minutes."
The Panthers led by 17 points after the third quarter ended, but the Red Devils grinded out a 18-6 start to the fourth quarter to trail by just 5. Pinckneyville was up to the task at the foul line in the closing moments, however, with Steve Brueggeman adding to his team-best point total and finishing with 17.
"One of the things is when you get fatigued, your mind starts to wander," said Waggoner, "and I think the physical fatigue of playing that hard, we wore down and then we started making mental mistakes."
The offense was clicking early for the Panthers, as Hunter Queen scored on a pair of fast breaks, Brueggeman sank a jumper, and Kyle Lamb established the post game with a bucket and two free throws during an 11-0 run to start the game.
Dustin Hicks finally took the lid off of the basket for the Devils with 2:37 to go in the first quarter, but Sesser-Valier struggled to find the hoop with much regularity against Pinckneyville's defensive intensity.
"I thought in the first half, they just could not get anything going and it was our defensive pressure, we really guarded well," Waggoner said.
Brueggeman scored the last six points of the half for the Panthers, who led 29-14 at the break before breaking a trend of slow third quarters by extending their advantage to 41-24 before the fourth.
Turnovers and questionable shot selection by the Panthers allowed Sesser-Valier back into the game as Hicks' cut the lead to 47-42 with under two minutes to play, but Brueggeman hit key free throws to keep Pinckneyville out in front.
"I thought we played a good third quarter," said Waggoner, "didn't come out and score two points or four points, actually scored, stayed even, worked the lead a little bit, and then in the fourth quarter the wheels fall off."
"We quit guarding and we quit taking care of the basketball. But, we still won."
Lamb finished with 12 points and Queen had 11 to give Pinckneyville (12-5) three players in double figures. Bryant Shute and Dylan Hardin had 4 points each, Payton Nippe and Christian Shopinski 3. Hicks led the Red Devils (12-4) with a game-high 28 points, 20 of them coming in the fourth quarter.
"(Sesser-Valier's Tim Witcher) never got loose, that was a big plan for us," Waggoner said. "(Hicks) got loose, but he got loose because our post players didn't help our guards. He hit some tough shots, give him credit, he got to the rim a little bit, but we made free throws at the end and that's what good teams do."
Pinckneyville looks to add yet another win to their 40-game winning streak at Rich Herrin Gymnasium on Friday when they face Carlyle at 9:00 p.m.
The Panthers will then return on Saturday to take on Hamilton County at 2:00 p.m. before closing out the 2011 B.I.T. in the 9:00 p.m. game with Okawville.
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