BASKETBALL: Panthers pick up pair of dramatic victories
PINCKNEYVILLE, IL - Two close games, two buzzer-beating victories for the Pinckneyville Panthers this past weekend in Thomas Gymnasium.
On Friday night, PCHS allowed a 14-point lead to slip away only to go on and defeat Carterville 54-52 in overtime on an off-balance driving lay-up by senior guard Luke Miller with 1.4 seconds left on the clock.
The Lions outscored the Panthers 31-17 over the final ten minutes of regulation to force the OT, but couldn't overcome the career night by Miller, who led all scorers with 24 points.
"Basically what you're trying to do at that point is hold for the last shot and hope that you can get the ball to the rim or get fouled," said Panthers' head coach Bob Waggoner. "We ran a clear-out play for Miller and he got to the goal and finished the basket. He had a great ball-game overall, I thought defensively he did a great job on (Michael) Aschemann and offensively he was very aggressive.
There wasn't much to see on offense by either side in the first half, at least not until Pinckneyville's 10-0 run to close out the second period and head into the locker rooms with a 16-10 lead.
After failing to score in the first half, PCHS's Chris Priebe got the ball inside more often in the third quarter and put in 7 of the Panthers' 16 points as they built a 32-23 lead heading to the fourth.
"We really tried to pound it in there to him," Waggoner said. "We just told him he's going to have to be aggressive when people shove him around. Finally he got the ball in there and worked off of it."
"We just challenged them at halftime to make plays, be aggressive. I asked our guys 'is there anyone in here we tell not to shoot the ball?' No - so be aggressive, shoot the ball, if you get a charge or you take a shot too quick, just keep playing. Players make plays, we have to have our players step up and do that and I thought in the second half we did."
The Lions erupted for 24 points in the fourth period where Aschemann had 11 of his team-high 17. Aschemann, Blake Watson and Matt Galik all hit three-pointers in the frame and it was Galik's driving lay-up with 3.4 on the clock that tied the game for the first time since it was 10-10 in the second quarter.
"When we got it to ten, we should have finished the game off," Waggoner said. "We had a couple of bad turnovers and we didn't value the ball. We took a quick shot, had a turnover, then they came down and scored and we fouled to give them a three-point play and I thought that really was the difference. We really could have commanded the game around the six-minute mark, but instead we let them get back and get it to overtime."
With Tyler Horn already fouled out, Lucas Hunter joined him on the bench early in the OT when he hacked Priebe, who sank both free throws. Galik tied it with another driving lay-up, but a three-point play from Miller after a crossover move gave PCHS the lead with 1:57 left.
Watson made free throws to tie the score, but the Panthers had a shot to win it as time ticked away. Miller drove in got the shot off just before hitting the ground to give PCHS a crucial conference victory.
With Sparta upsetting Nashville on Friday, the Panthers can now split the SIRR Mississippi Division if they win their remaining conference games.
Priebe and Caleb Dahn joined Miller in double digits with a dozen points apiece. Hardin finished with 4 points, Tristan Fisher 2.
Watson added 13 for Carterville, Galik and Horn 9, Hunter 3 and Matt Bigelow 1.
-Pinckneyville 41, Trenton Wesclin 40
If Friday night's close call wasn't enough drama for Panther fans, Saturday's Panther Showcase meeting with Trenton Wesclin provided another exciting finish.
This time the Panthers trailed by seven with 3:16 left in the ball game when Miller hit a lay-up and Dahn followed with a pair of jumpers for a quick 6-0 run. A minute and a half later and still trailing by one, the Panthers had the ball with 16.1 seconds on the clock coming out of a timeout.
Hardin was the hero on this night, driving the baseline for two points, a foul, and ultimately a one-point Panther victory. His basket made the final 41-40 after the Warriors couldn't get a good look after Hardin missed the free throw with 3.8 seconds left on the clock.
Eight different Panthers scored in the game with Priebe's 12 leading the team. Miller, Hardin and Nolan Luke each had 6 points, Dahn 4, Fisher 3, and Chase Lazenby and Brandon Edwards 2.
Pinckneyville (16-9) has a light schedule this week with just one game - Friday night's trip to Anna to meet the Wildcats (4-17), who have yet to win a conference game this season.