03-03-06
BY JACK BULLOCK
PINCKNEYVILLE - Sometimes the game lives up to its billing.

Although it wasn't the prettiest girl at the sock-hop, none of the near 3,000 fans could have possibly left Duster Thomas Gym feeling cheated about the music, the dance partners or the performances by these two storied programs in this important contest.

On Friday night at the Pinckneyville Class A Sectional, Nashville and the host Panthers engaged in a struggle for survival that wasn't decided until the last :06 seconds of the skirmish.

The Hornets had the ball with a chance to tie the game and had their best player - Lucas O'Rear - with a good look at the basket.

However his 10-footer from just inside the paint banked off the glass and off the iron.

After Pinckneyville's Thad Hawkins got the rebound and headed into the frontcourt, the Panthers had secured their 18th sectional title with an exhilarating 42-40 win.

"I thought it was a pretty good shot and when he was coming up the floor we had one more timeout but I wasn't sure if we were going to get a better shot," said Nashville coach Darin Lee, who saw his clubs' season come to a conclusion Friday night.

For the first time since 2004, the Panthers (30-1) are headed back to SIU Arena Tuesday night for the Carbondale Class A Supersectional, as they will tangle with Hamilton County, a 51-40 winner over the host Redbirds at the West Frankfort Class A Sectional also played Friday night.

"We were just hoping that we could get someone between him (O'Rear) and the basket and make him shoot something that is not just dead at the rim and then you just take your chances," added Corn, talking about the final shot of the game by Nashville. "If we had made some free throws it would have made it tougher on them but it turned out ok."

O'Rear topped all scorers with 15-points to go along with his 12-rebounds while Pinckneyville got 10-points from Zack Hawkins.

Those two were the only players to reach double-digits in this defensive fracas.

But if you are looking for a momentum switch to the game and perhaps an unlikely hero, one can point to the final moments of the first quarter that helped Pinckneyville advance to the "Sweet 16."

Collin Woodside came off of the Panthers' pine and hit two huge shots.

Trailing in the early going as Nashville raced out to a 10-4 lead, Woodside connected on a pair of 3-pointers to finish the first quarter scoring.

With O'Rear scoring six points on three baskets in close and Blaine Morris scoring twice on shots in close as well, Nashville got in the first big jab of the bout.

But the Woodside bombs, both from the right side of the court, evened the contest at the first stoppage.

"Our bench gave us a lift offensively tonight, Woodside hit two big 'three's' for us. We were reeling a little bit there in the first quarter," Corn added. "He (Woodside) stepped up and got us back to the break-even point."

The second quarter, after the offensive lift from the bench got them even, saw the Panthers edge ahead.

Zack Hawkins and Ryan Rushing triggered an 8-2 scoring run that prompted a Nashville timeout with 4:42 before the half.

Rushing scored on a pass from Kyle Cassity to open the run.

Following a Dillon York score for the Hornets on an inbound play; Zack Hawkins scored four points on a pair of free throws and a fast break score off of a Nashville turnover. His brother Thad also hit a pair of free throws for an 18-12 overture (beginning).

O'Rear managed to get enough looks at the basket to come up with five second quarter points.

His spin move in the lane cut the Panthers advantage to 21-16.

Nashville senior point guard Todd Kostecki scored on a drive to the basket that forced Zack Hawkins' second personal foul. Despite missing the free throw, Kostecki's team trailed just 21-19.

But more important to the quarter and eventual outcome of the game was O'Rear and his foul problems.

In just a little more than a minute the 6-foot-6 junior and ABV 'Carbondale Supersectional Area 'Player of the Year' picked up three personal fouls and had to head to the bench.

In his absence, Pinckneyville benefited.

Austin Winter took a back door pass from Cassity and scored on one trip and then Thad Hawkins followed a Hayden Hicks miss on a fast break attempt and his stick-back closed the first half scoring at 25-19.

"They (Pinckneyville) got some hands on some basketballs tonight in the passing lanes and Woodside coming off the bench and hitting those two 'three's' in the first quarter when we had them down 10-4 were probably pretty big, also," said Nashville coach Darin Lee.

Nashville's best run of the evening, a 10-2 eruption with four different Hornets scoring knotted the game at 29-all in the third period.

O'Rear got Ryan Keller the ball in the paint on one trip and his made shot started the run.

Then O'Rear, Morris and York all hit shots which was followed up by O'Rear's second score of the run; a monster two-handed dunk on an inbounds play evened things with 1:34 left in the quarter.

However every time Nashville made a move, Pinckneyville had a counter.

Thad Hawkins scored nine points on the night but none were any bigger than his 3-pointer from the right corner at 1:14 on the clock.

Keller, who doesn't score a lot of points for Coach Lee's club, put in a shot on a spin move to close the frame at 32-31 Panthers.

Nashville looked primed to seize the moment when the final quarter opened when Tommy Pelczynski stepped up and made a pair of big plays for the Hornets.

A steal and a fast break lay in and later a 3-pointer from the top of the arc coming off of a screen gave Nashville its first lead since the first quarter at 36-34.

"Pelczynski hit a couple of big shots for us tonight in the fourth quarter, and the 'three' was a big shot and we got him open on a down pick," Lee explained. "We had some other guys get some baskets when we needed them tonight. Just not quite enough of them."

Nevertheless, Pinckneyville on this night took everything the Hornets threw at them and responded with an immediate reply each time.

Six-consecutive points on three buckets - two by Austin Winter and one from Zack Hawkins - were the go ahead points for the final time for the Panthers as they wouldn't let this lead slip away.

O'Rear, who didn't want to chance picking up his fifth personal foul, allowed the two Winter buckets in the lane with little resistance.

"Austin (Winter) got one on him late and he (O'Rear) couldn't do anything to stop him because he couldn't take a chance of fouling out," added Corn, talking about O'Rear playing late in the game with four fouls.

The second one was a rebound score to make it 40-36 with 3:26 remaining.

"With him (O'Rear) in foul trouble and not able to challenge and guard the basket or block shots it takes away an element of our defense," added Lee.

The Panthers could have made Coach Corn's life a bit easier in the final moments had they knocked down all of their free throws.

Trailing 40-38 after two made charities by Kostecki, Nashville sent the Panthers to the charity stripe in the final 1:12 on three different occasions.

However Pinckneyville left the door open, hitting just two of five attempts.

With the score 42-40 with :12.4 to go, O'Rear grabbed a rebound from a Thad Hawkins missed free throw setting up the games final dramatic moment.

Yet his missed shot and Pinckneyville rebound spelled the end of the Nashville season.

"That was a war out there and it was one of those games where it’s a shame somebody loses," said Pinckneyville head coach Dick Corn. "Both teams deserved to win. If we make a few more shots then we are in good shape; they don't turn it over as much than they (Nashville) are in pretty good shape. Both teams rallied tonight at times and that is what good basketball teams do."

Both Pinckneyville and Nashville struggled from the field in this game; but it was the Hornets and their inability to take care of the ball on this night that helped send them home to get ready for spring sports.

Nashville committed 15 turnovers in the game, including four in the final quarter.

"That (turnovers) has been a weakness of ours all season," added Lee. "Passing wasn't one of our strong suits."

Behind Zack Hawkins' 10-points and brother Thad's nine, Austin Winter and Woodside added six points each. Cassity added five points and four assists.

Pinckneyville hit 15-of-41 shots from the field and just 3-of-13 from behind the 3-point line but they took better care of the basketball, coughing up just five turnovers.

O'Rear and his 'double-double' paced Nashville. Coach Lee got six points from Morris and four each from York, Kostecki and Keller.

The Hornets kept pace with Pinckneyville from the field hitting 17-of-41 and 1-of-2 from behind the arc.

A team that normally gets more chances from 3-point land, Nashville struggled to get open looks from 20-feet.

"I thought we held him down tonight even though he got 15," added Corn, referring to the defensive effort on O'Rear. "He had 24 and 28 points in games this year and we had beaten them. I thought we guarded them (Nashville) well tonight, and did a great job defensively especially on the perimeter."

Nashville, the Woodlawn Regional champions, lost to the Panthers three times this season and dropped this game despite a 30-18 rebounding advantage.

"This is a tough place to play and it was an advantage for them but that is just the way things worked out this year," finalized Lee, as his team finished 22-10. "We had the same advantage last year and we have won two sectionals on our home floor in the last ten years so we can't complain. I am not disappointed with the effort but I am disappointed with the loss. We are a pretty proud program and we don't come in and expect to lose big games. It was a loss but it wasn't a defeat. We battled and came up a little short."

Pinckneyville will now turn its attention to Hamilton County, a team it struggled with for a half in a game at the Benton Invitational Tournament back on January 16th before pulling out a 45-33 win.

"They (Hamilton County) are so well coached and they will try to lull you to sleep and back door you and all of that stuff," said Corn about Tuesday's opponent. "They will come ready to play and they will be a different type of challenge for us than Nashville was tonight."

	1	2	3	4		Final
Pinckneyville	10	15	7	15	-	42
Nashville	10	9	12	9	-	40

Pinckneyville (42) - T. Hawkins 2 1 2-3 9, Hicks 0 0 0-0 0, L. Winter 1 0 0-0 2, Cassity 0 0 5-8 5, Graskewicz 1 0 0-1 2, Woodside 0 2 0-0 6, A. Winter 3 0 0-1 6, Z. Hawkins 4 0 2-2 10.
2FG-12, 3FG-3, FT-9-15, PF-16.
Nashville (40) - Reckmann 0 0 0-0 0, Morris 3 0 0-0 6, Pelczynski 1 1 0-0 5, Kostecki 1 0 2-3 4, Patton 0 0 2-2 2, Conner 0 0 0-0 0, York 2 0 0-0 4, O'Rear 7 0 1-2 15, Keller 2 0 0-0 4.
2FG-16, 3FG-1, FT-5-7, PF-15.
Fouled Out - Kostecki, Nashville.
Technical Fouls - None.