02/11/2022
BY JACK BULLOCK
PINCKNEYVILLE - It was a the type of game that happens when two defensive minded programs, that know each other far too well, get together.

Friday night the Nashville Hornets led by as many as 12-points in the first half before they finally put away their rival Pinckneyville.

Some big defensive stops, including eight blocked shots by the interior defense, along with some late free throws gave the Hornets a 30-26 victory in front of a large crowd at Duster Thomas Gymnasium.

Six-seven junior forward Saxton Hoepker led the scoring for Coach Patrick Weathers' crew with 14-points, nearly half of the team's total, while hauling down six-rebounds.

However his defense, and his two late free throws (4-of-4 from the line in the game) in the final moments, proved important as the team moved closer to yet another SIRR Mississippi Division championship.

Senior guard Isaac Turner added eight-points in the win as Nashville now sits 21-4 overall and 6-0 in the league standings.

Six-three junior Carter Schoenherr added four-points, with two baskets in the first quarter.

Kolten Gajewski, a 6-7 senior forward, added 1-of-2 free throws for his only point but he led Nashville on the glass with a seven-rebound effort.

“We're fortunate to have some size and we can get blocks and rebounds. In a grinder game like this when it's going to be in the 20's and 30's in means every possession matters, it can kind of erase a possession essentially with a blocked shot and dominate the boards, it's really huge,” said Coach Weathers. “In a game that is 30-26 every point matters. Survive and move on.”

The Hornets went undefeated in the Covid19 2020-21 season (10-0) and with one less team this season, they can wrap up the title with home wins over Anna-Jonesboro on Saturday and DuQuoin next Tuesday to finish 8-0.

The game, in score, was similar to the first meeting between the two teams as Nashville won at home 34-29 back on December 21st.

Coach Bob Waggoner's Panthers' rally fell short as they're now 21-4 just like the Hornets but 5-2 in the SIRR Mississippi.

Senior Duke Riggins, a 5-11 guard, helped spark the late comeback effort with seven fourth quarter points as he ended up with nine overall.

Junior guard Pearson Launius added seven-points for the Panthers while Pinckneyville got five-points each from seniors Trey Moll and Nile Adcock.

Moll (seven) and Adcock (six) led the Panthers in rebounding on the night.

As you can tell by the score, neither team provided much in the way of offensive success.

The Panthers ended up 10-of-37 overall from the floor, 4-of-19 from the arc to go with 13-turnovers.

None of those totals are conducive to winning basketball.

Nashville was just slightly better overall hitting on 11-of-30 from the field, while missing all four of their 3-point attempts.

Coach Weathers' club edged the Panthers on the glass 21-19 and they were a bit better with the basketball, committing just 11-turnovers by comparison.

Although early in the game it looked like Nashville was going to make quick work of the hosts.

Nashville jumped out to an 11-2 lead with buckets coming from Schoenherr early.

His first score came on a drive in the lane and his next came on a back door cut to the goal with the assist going to Turner.

A score by Turner and two free throws by Hoepker highlighted the early run.

Pinckneyville responded with a 3-pointer from Moll and a transition score off of a steal by junior Kellen Scott and a lay in by Adcock.

However a Hoepker bucket to close the first quarter scoring led to a 7-0 run and a 19-7 lead with 5:50 left in the second quarter.

Six-six senior reserve forward Hayden Robinson came off of the bench and contributed.

He took a pass from Hoepker and converted a shot in close while being fouled by Panthers' sophomore Karsen Konkel.

The converted three-point play keep the run going.

A rebound score by Hoepker off of his own missed shot and a nice drive and spin move in the lane by Turner pushed the advantage to 21-9 with 4:18 remaining.

The Panthers put together some defensive stops and got a pair of big shots by Adcock and Launius.

Adcock cashed in a 3-pointer from the right wing and Launius closed the half with a drive for a basket as the scoreboard read 21-14 at the half.

While neither offense was a juggernaut in the first half, things were much worse in the third quarter.

The two teams were a combined 3-of-16 from the floor with six turnovers (three for each team).

The two shots that the Panthers knocked down were 3-pointer from Launius and a drive by Moll.

Turner hit the only shot for the Hornets, a rebound score that turned into a three-point play as the quarter ended at 24-19 Nashville.

The fourth quarter beginning was when Riggins made his mark.

Consecutive drives to the basket resulted in points, although they were nearly two minutes apart in game time.

His second bucket cut the Hornets lead to just 24-23.

But Hoepker scored twice in the lane; once on a spin move from the right blocks for a two-handed slam-dunk and the second time on a short jumper.

A 3-pointer from Riggins with 1:06 left proved to be the final points for Pinckneyville as they trailed by 28-26.

Nashville left the door slightly open when Schoenherr missed the front end of a one-and-one but the Panthers turned the ball back over to Nashville with :19.7 remaining.

Hoepker put the game out of reach a few seconds later as he calmly knocked down two free throws for the final margin.

Pinckneyville missed another 3-point attempt with Turner grabbing the rebound.

Another foul and another Schoenherr missed free throw with :05.0 remaining didn't hurt the Hornets as Launius missed a desperation 3-pointer at the buzzer that wouldn't have changed the outcome.

The Panthers have a final game of the season next Thursday on the road at Carterville to close out the regular season.

It is entirely possible that Nashville and Pinckneyville could meet for a third time at the 2A DuQuoin Regional on Friday, February 25th.

Both will have to win regional games to get there.

The number-two seed Nashville will have to beat the winner of the Chester/Red Bud game while the number-three seed Panthers will have to deal with the winner of the Sparta/DuQuoin contest in the regional semifinals.

“It's never easy to play here. It's kind of like Groundhog Day, it doesn't matter if it's at Duster Thomas or the Assembly Hall it's going to come down to the wire,” said Coach Weathers. “We didn't have a great second half, we only scored nine-points but it was good enough to win. We battled through it and I'm really proud of the kids. Proud of the seven seniors that we got.”

Nashville (30) – Scheonherr 2 0 0-3 4, Heggemeier 0 0 0-0 0, Hoepker 5 0 4-4 14, Knepp 0 0 0-0 0, Gajewski 0 0 1-2 1, Turner 3 0 2-3 8, Robinson 1 0 1-1 3. 2FG-11, 3FG-0, FT-8-13, PF-8.
Pinckneyville (26) – Riggins 3 1 0-0 9, Adcock 1 1 0-0 5, Launius 1 1 2-2 7, Scott 0 0 0-0 0, Szczepanski 0 0 0-0 0, Moll 1 1 0-0 5, Konekl 0 0 0-0 0. 2FG-6, 3FG-4, FT-2-2, PF-16.
Fouled Out – None.
Technical Fouls – None.