Boys - Southwest District Tournament - 1st Round - Lebanon 79 Tazewell 31 - FINAL
- Thread starter pizzzzza
- Start date
SOUTHWEST BOYS: Lebanon zips past Tazewell
“The biggest difference was our intensity,” said Lebanon coach Brian Hooker. “When we went to Tazewell we were flat, I don’t know if it was because we had played hard against Graham the night before, but when the lights come on its time to play and we didn’t do that at Tazewell. Tazewell played well up there, we were fortunate to win.”
There wasn’t much doubt to the outcome Wednesday at Long Gymnasium. Lebanon (15-8) exploded for a 15-3 advantage, scoring on six of their first seven possessions. The Pioneers forced 14 turnovers in the first 16 minutes of play, while making 14-of-24 shots from the floor to go up 37-17 at halftime.
“Needless to say, this was a big win for us,” said Lebanon senior Adam Hooker who poured in a game-high 20 points. “We knew what was on the line, we just wanted to come in here and play our guts out. Now we advance to the semifinals on Friday and hopefully we can take the intensity we had tonight and bring it on Friday.”
Any hopes the Bulldogs had of getting back into the game vanished quickly in the third quarter. A Pioneers team that has averaged less than 50 points a game this season outscored Tazewell 26-8 in the third when they made over 73 percent of their shots.
“Tonight, we were pretty good on both ends,” Coach Hooker said. “Offensively, that’s as well as we’ve played all year. We shared the ball, we found open guys and we hit the open shots. Defensively we were as good as we’ve been too.”
This season was a struggle for Tazewell (4-17) but there were some signs of improvement. Although the Bulldogs didn’t win a SWD game, they came close in several contests.
“I’m not happy with the record, obviously we want to win more games,” said Tazewell coach Patrick Cronce. “But compared to last season, we were in a lot more games. We had chances to win and that’s going to come.
“We haven’t won very much or been in a position to win, so we want to change the culture at Tazewell. We had chances to win against Richlands, Marion and Lebanon. We’re young but we’ve been in games and that’s what we want to build on.”
Although Tazewell’s basketball season ends, the Pioneers advance to the SWD semifinals on Friday to face Richlands at Graham. The two teams tied for second in the regular season, with Richlands claiming the second-seed by a points formula. Richlands and Lebanon split in the regular-season series, so a lot will be on the line.
“It’s a big game,” Adam Hooker said. “Richlands has a really good team. We will prepare tomorrow and hopefully go up there and play well, it would be a big win for us.”
- Anthony Stevens | Sports Correspondent
“The biggest difference was our intensity,” said Lebanon coach Brian Hooker. “When we went to Tazewell we were flat, I don’t know if it was because we had played hard against Graham the night before, but when the lights come on its time to play and we didn’t do that at Tazewell. Tazewell played well up there, we were fortunate to win.”
There wasn’t much doubt to the outcome Wednesday at Long Gymnasium. Lebanon (15-8) exploded for a 15-3 advantage, scoring on six of their first seven possessions. The Pioneers forced 14 turnovers in the first 16 minutes of play, while making 14-of-24 shots from the floor to go up 37-17 at halftime.
“Needless to say, this was a big win for us,” said Lebanon senior Adam Hooker who poured in a game-high 20 points. “We knew what was on the line, we just wanted to come in here and play our guts out. Now we advance to the semifinals on Friday and hopefully we can take the intensity we had tonight and bring it on Friday.”
Any hopes the Bulldogs had of getting back into the game vanished quickly in the third quarter. A Pioneers team that has averaged less than 50 points a game this season outscored Tazewell 26-8 in the third when they made over 73 percent of their shots.
“Tonight, we were pretty good on both ends,” Coach Hooker said. “Offensively, that’s as well as we’ve played all year. We shared the ball, we found open guys and we hit the open shots. Defensively we were as good as we’ve been too.”
This season was a struggle for Tazewell (4-17) but there were some signs of improvement. Although the Bulldogs didn’t win a SWD game, they came close in several contests.
“I’m not happy with the record, obviously we want to win more games,” said Tazewell coach Patrick Cronce. “But compared to last season, we were in a lot more games. We had chances to win and that’s going to come.
“We haven’t won very much or been in a position to win, so we want to change the culture at Tazewell. We had chances to win against Richlands, Marion and Lebanon. We’re young but we’ve been in games and that’s what we want to build on.”
Although Tazewell’s basketball season ends, the Pioneers advance to the SWD semifinals on Friday to face Richlands at Graham. The two teams tied for second in the regular season, with Richlands claiming the second-seed by a points formula. Richlands and Lebanon split in the regular-season series, so a lot will be on the line.
“It’s a big game,” Adam Hooker said. “Richlands has a really good team. We will prepare tomorrow and hopefully go up there and play well, it would be a big win for us.”
