Grayson County High School, Leitchfield, Kentucky, 01-22-08
I was going to lay off tonight, but when WBGN play-by-play man, Scott Thompson, told me I could ride along with him, it brought the eternal moocher in me springing to life. Tonight I was Thompson's broadcast engineer. When we set up in the press box at Grayson County's gym, he had me check power sources for the radio equipment. He had me stand by a light switch and turn it on and off. It was tough duty, but I got through it. I told him that I expected union wages.
A few weeks ago, Chris Gregory, the Pick and Rolls fearless Fifth Region Correspondent, stated that KY 84 was as curvy as Jessica Simpson. I'm going to one up him. KY 185 between Richardsville and Caneyville is as curvy as a sorority pledge party.
Tuesday's game was a match up between two team trying to make a move toward the top of their regions. Bowling Green is near the top in the Fourth, and Grayson is near the top in the Third. Both had 13-6 records going into the contest.
The similarities stop there. Grayson County is strong and plays patient, ball control basketball. Bowling Green is long and lanky and likes to open up the game and play all 94 feet of the court. Both teams are good and well coached.
I was surprised when the Cougars opened with a man-to-man defense against the visitors. That allowed the Purples to play their game, and they controlled the boards and the paint. Bowling Green played superb defense in the first quarter. It was one of the best defensive efforts I've seen this season, and it says a lot that Grayson County scored 13 points against the Purples' full court pressure. D.G. Sherrill has his team pressing after turnovers and missed baskets, and they did it well in the first quarter. Bowling Green had an eight point lead at the end of the first, 21-13.
Grayson County's sophomore sensation hurt his hand just a minute into the second quarter, and he sat out until the four minute mark. The Cougars played well without him on the court and cut into the lead. The score was 27-26 after Johnston hit a running jump shot with under two minutes left in the half, but Tevis Barksdale answered with one of his three first half three point shots.
Bowling Green's defense was going to determine the outcome of the game. When the Purples applied pressure and played active, tough defense, they controlled the game. They had a couple of lapses in the second quarter, but they took a 30-26 lead into the break.
At halftime, D.L. Moore, Bowling Green's 6'6" center, who is headed to the University of South Carolina to play football, only had four points. Travis Johnston had nine, a very quiet nine.
Grayson County surprised the Purples to open the third quarter. Johnston nailed a three just a few seconds into the half, and teammate Tyler Saltsman hit another one after a Bowling Green turnover. Just 43 seconds into the quarter, the game changed complexion. The Cougars had a 32-30 lead on the visitors. Coach Sherrill called a timeout, and it was much needed. The Purps were a Led Zepplin song: Dazed and Confused.
The Purples made the mistake of letting Travis Johnston get loose in close to the basket. The Cougars kept hitting easy baskets, and Johnston scored 9 points in three and a half minutes. It looked like Bowling Green was in trouble, but they re-asserted their defensive pressure late in the third. They forced Johnston and the rest of the Cougars to take contested outside shots.
Bowling Green also started working the ball down low to D.L. Moore, who used his long arms to catch the ball and put it in the basket. He made several text book put-ins off the glass using both hands and never bringing the ball below his head. Pick and Roll loves to see fundamental basketball, and Moore put on a clinic on several plays.
The Purples struggled a little in the third quarter, but they took a one point, 45-44, lead into the fourth quarter.
Grayson County continued to play man-to-man with Bowling Green, and the Cougar squad looked tired early in the fourth. They finally played some 2-3 zone, but Bowling Green hit a huge three point shot to make it 52-48 heading down the stretch.
The Purples switched to a zone defense in the fourth. They played a 1-3-1 with D.L. Moore at the head of the zone. Sherrill was careful not to let Moore move to far from one side to the other, and he kept his arms up and out, frustrating the Grayson County shooters. Moore showed great skill coming off of the top of that zone and getting into position to grab rebounds. I haven't seen Bowling Green play much zone this season, but they played it very well on Tuesday night.
Bowling Green forced Grayson's offense further and further away from the basket, and they controlled things down the stretch. They won 65-55.
Both teams are good teams. Top ranked Muhlenberg North rolls into Cougar Country on Friday night, and Stars unblemished Third Region record could fall. Bowling Green travels across town to arch-rival Warren Central that night.
OBSERVATIONS
Canine or Feline?: If Bowling Green High won't call their hot dogs "D.G. Dogs," then maybe I can convince the fine Grayson County folks to call theirs "Cat Dogs." It wasn't the best hot dog I've ever eaten, but he popcorn at Grayson's concession stand is fantastic. It gets a Pick and Roll "Three Thumbs Up" rating.
Bird Was a Player: I know what the readers are thinking: Larry Bird. When a person says "Bird" in Grayson County, they think Brittany. She left the Lady Cougars after scoring 2,376 points. That makes me say, "gosh." Gosh!
Must Put Face On: Earlier in the week when some girls were trying to catch a glimpse of Bowling Green assistant coach Anthony Winchester, they told Coach D.G. Sherrill they wanted to see his "cute" coaching staff. Sherrill responded, "girls, I don't wake up looking this good."
Can't Get There From Here: I challenge Pick and Roll readers to find a good route from Bowling Green to Leitchfield. It's worse going to Hardinsburg. I spent two years running those routes for my job, and I never could settle on a good combination of roads to get to those places. In order to get from BG to Leitchfield, you've got to go somewhere else. Scott Thompson and I debated our route the whole way up there.
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