Bulldogs clinch 20-win season

</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[In what seemed to be a weekend theme, the Harrisburg High School boys basketball team was down early, and yet, was still able to post second-half rallies to pick up wins against Herrin and Cairo, en route to reaching the 20-win mark.

"That was one of our preseason goals and it's always one that is always hard to get because over the course of that many games you deal with a lot of situations playing with people hurt, people sick against so many different types of teams," head coach Randy Smithpeters said. "It's just really a true test of a team to win 20 games."

Cain Sheldon paced the Bulldogs with 27 points in a 64-52 win against the Pilots on Saturday at the Rich Herrin Classic in Benton.

Harrisburg came into the game having handily beaten Cairo in its home gym in early January, but Saturday's re-match took a different course as the Pilots jumped out to an early 6-0 lead before the Bulldogs could get their wits about them.

Sheldon started the comeback with a 3-pointer, Capel Henshaw followed with a put-back shot, and after a three by Cairo, Reid Roper drilled a triple to tie the game at 8-8 early in the first quarter to set off a see-saw tilt.

HHS held an 18-14 first quarter lead, but a 7-2 spurt by Cairo to end the second quarter helped the Pilots take a 31-30 lead into halftime.

Cairo would build on its halftime advantage, taking a 35-30 lead in the third quarter's opening moments. But just like in the first period, Harrisburg had an answer and rattled off five straight points. The Pilots answered with a five-point rally of its own to take a 40-35 lead midway through the third.

Roper hit a pair of free throws to start a 15-5 run, Henshaw hit the freebies that gave Harrisburg a one-point lead and Sheldon scored eight in the game-changing run.

Smithpeters said the Pilots kept the Bulldogs off balance by throwing numerous defenses at the team's offense, but better on-court decisions were made to ensure Harrisburg wouldn't let this lead slip away.

"We had to make some good decisions," Smithpeters said. "We didn't shoot very well in the first half and we took better shots in the second half.

In the Bulldogs' 70-65 win against Herrin on Friday at Davenport Gymnasium, Harrisburg connected on six straight free throws in the final minute to secure its third win against the Tigers this season.

The win helped the Bulldogs move their record to 19-6, surpassing last season's win total with three regular season games remaining. In the victory, Sheldon led the way with 20 points as he moved into sole possession of second place on Harrisburg's all-time scoring list.

Henshaw chipped in with 18 and senior Lucas Elverd added 15.

It was not an easy victory for Harrisburg against Herrin. The Bulldogs took two early season match-ups from the Tigers, including on the road in Herrin and on a neutral court at the Eldorado Holiday Tournament where the Tigers were ranked as the top squad.

Friday night's match-up had a different feel as the game featured four ties and seven lead changes.

"Much of the first half there's probably not a lot of things you could name that we did well," Smithpeters said. "We got out-rebounded, we got out-shot, anything you want to name we got out-done and that's why we were down."

The Bulldogs took an early advantage in the second half, but a quick spurt by the Tigers took the momentum and the lead away from the home team. Harrisburg did not regain the lead until Henshaw hit a pair of free throws at the 5:38 mark in the fourth quarter.

Harrisburg made 25 of its 34 free throw attempts for 73.5 percent, while Herrin shot only 14 times from the charity stripe, making 10.

"We're very fortunate and I'm very happy we survived that," Smithpeters said.

Friday's Box Score

HER 13 17 20 15-65

HBG 12 17 15 26-70

Herrin (65): Jones 5 0-0 14, Mallow 5 0-0 10, Harris 5 0-0 10, Timmons 2 3-4 7, Caldwell 3 3-6 9, Lukens 3 2-2 9, Mannie 2 2-2 6. Totals: 25 10-14 65.

Three-point field goals: Jones 4, Lukens 1.

Harrisburg (70): Roper 3 3-4 11, T. Smithpeters 2 0-0 4, Henshaw 3 11-12 18, Rasch 1 0-1 2, Sheldon 6 8-11 20, Elverd 6 3-6 15. Totals: 21 25-34 70.

Three-point field goals: Roper 2, Henshaw 1.

Saturday's Box Score

HBG 18 12 20 14-64

CAI 14 17 13 8-52

Harrisburg (64): Roper 4 2-2 14, Henshaw 3 2-2 9, Rasch 1 0-0 2, Sheldon 8 9-10 27, Elverd 5 2-4 12. Totals: 21 15-18 64.

Three-point field goals: Roper 4, Henshaw 1, Sheldon 2.

Cairo (52): Mayfield 4 2-2 10, Wright 4 1-2 9, Williams 6 0-3 12, Hill 6 1-1 13, Woodson 3 2-5 8. Totals: 23 6-13 52.