Boys Prep Basketball: Pinckneyville wins 30th straight at Rich Herrin Gymnasium
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[ After letting a 16-point lead slip away, Pinckneyville needed overtime to hold off Okawville on Monday night, going 9-for-12 from the line in the extra four minutes to win 58-53 at the 2010 Benton Invitational Tournament.
"I felt like if we got on them early we could set ourselves up for a win, and it's a good thing we did," said Panthers' head coach Bob Waggoner. "Later in the game, we quit running, we quit attacking, we quit checking off and playing the way we got the lead, but I give our guys a lot of credit for finding a way to get it to overtime and find a way to win."
The Panthers came out in a flurry for the first five minutes, as Jake Bathon started a 15-1 run with an up-and-under move inside for two.
Hunter Queen sank a three-pointer with 5:11 to go in the first quarter, as the Rockets bench called for timeout down 11-1.
Austin Schwankhaus connected for three towards the end of the period for Okawville, but the Panthers were still in control 19-4 headed to the second.
Nathan Morton, playing in his first game since breaking the scaphoid bone in his left wrist on January 9 against Freeburg, got in the scorebook late in the opening quarter with a jumper for two of his eight points.
After the Rockets had closed the gap to 21-11, another quick Panther run extended the lead once again.
Shay Kellerman hit a jumper with 2:53 remaining in the half, then Bathon came away with a steal and a layup moments later. Kyle Lamb hit a pair of free throws with 1:58 left to complete a 6-0 run and give the Panthers their biggest lead at 27-11.
Turnovers began to become an issue for Pinckneyville in the third, as their tenth (with 2:32 on the clock) allowed Tyler Brammeier to bring the Rockets within six after a rebound and putback.
"Their kids played with a lot of energy," said Waggoner, "from the second quarter through the fourth their energy level was better than ours."
Queen connected from downtown again, but Okawville was hanging around down 40-32.
Schwankhuas' three pointer near the start of the fourth began a 11-0 Rockets run to take their first lead with 4:29 to play in the game. That stretch saw Kellerman miss the front end of a one-and-one opportunity at the line, and Lamb miss both free throws on the next trip down the floor as the Panthers had let their double-digit lead disappear.
With the game tied at 45-45, the Panthers held for one shot near the end of regulation, but came away with nothing.
With both teams into the bonus much earlier in the half, free throw shooting and defense would be the determining factor in the game's outcome, and the Panthers connected from the line when they had to.
Bathon cut through the lane for the extra frame's first points, but Pinckneyville would add only one more field goal the rest of the way.
Schwankhaus and Walton kept the Rockets close with three-pointers, but the Panthers scored nine points from the free throw line as Okawville was forced to foul more frequently as they fell behind.
"What I liked about our guys is that I never really saw a look of panic," Waggoner said.
Pyatt and Queen combined to make the last five free throws with under a minute left to stretch the game to two possessions.
Pyatt's 16 points led the Panthers, Kellerman added 13.
The Panthers play again this Wednesday evening at the B.I.T., taking on Hamilton County at 7:30 p.m. at Rich Herrin Gymnasium.
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