BOYS BASKETBALL: Panthers snap out of funk, beat Sparta

For the first four minutes of Wednesday's Regional semifinal, it looked like Pinckneyville's offense was still stuck in a funk that had resulted in a four-game losing streak to end the regular season. But after Brayden Cowley hit his first of three three-pointers with 3:55 to go in the opening period, the Panthers turned things around and earned another shot at the top-seeded host of the Nashville Regional.

PCHS used a strong third quarter to put away Sparta last night, winning 60-44 and moving into the championship game, which will take place at 7:00 p.m. on Friday night at Assembly Hall.

"I think we played pretty good," said Panthers head coach Bob Waggoner, "I thought we moved the ball better, I thought we shot it better. We played with more confidence, we were more aggressive on the glass. I thought we did a great job of keeping them one-and-done and really did a good job on their quickness, keeping them out of the lane. It's just confidence, getting more confidence shooting the ball, I thought it was a better game for us."

Sparta had given Pinckneyville some problems in their two previous meetings this season, and were right there after Dayton Oliver's three tied the game at 13-13 less than a minute into the second period.

But the Panthers had an answer - a 6-0 spurt to grab the lead for good. Brian Taylor picked up a loose ball for a mid-range jumper, then Tristan Fisher scored on back-to-back possessions - first on a jump shot, then on a tip-in.

PCHS maintained a six-point edge at the break, setting up what turned out to be a decisive third quarter.

Seth Ferguson's triple with 7:05 to go in the third made it 28-23 Panthers, but a 9-0 run put PCHS far enough ahead that not even three more Bulldog three-pointers and two additional three-point plays would get the lead beneath ten the rest of the game.

Fisher and Cowley were again key in the third quarter push for Pinckneyville, with Fisher putting in four points in the paint during the stretch and Cowley banging in another three ball.

"We talked about getting the ball inside, high-low, we moved some kids around to where we could get them in a position to score a little bit better," Waggoner said. "We really looked to get it inside with our size advantage."

Fisher led the Panthers with 15 points, Cowley was right behind him with 14. PCHS's primary post players Caleb Dahn (9 points) and Clayton Houghland (8) combined for 17 points. Taylor added 6 points, Nolan Luke 4, and Adam Banach and Sam Simpson each had 2. Oliver's 16 points led the Bulldogs.

The Panthers (19-11) and Hornets battled twice during the regular season with Nashville winning both match-ups by a substantial margin. PCHS has not beaten a Hornets team with sophomore big man Royce Newman on the roster, losing all three matchups in 2012-13 as well.

How can all that change on Friday night?

"I think we've got to shoot it better," said Waggoner. "It's a real simple recipe. You know what's coming whether it's a sagging man or a big zone, and there's going to be open looks, but you've got to knock them down. If we score it a little bit better, and guard a little bit better, we'll be fine."