pulaski 76 amherst 48

[zack 10]

Shootaround pays off

Pulaski's Shay Dunnigan and Zadock Long combine for 24 points after extra practice.

By Evelio Contreras

381-1673

 

DUBLIN -- They were the first to show up and the last ones to leave. Pulaski County's Shay Dunnigan and Zadock Long decided after school that they would work on their jumpers and foul shots an hour before Monday night's Region III first-round game against Amherst County.

 

"I was hitting my shots and even my foul shots in warm-ups," Long said. Dunnigan was hitting his shots too. Long said he had a feeling then that the Cougars would win.

 

Down by two points after the first quarter, Long's premonition was tested. But Pulaski went on a 12-0 run in the second quarter, sparked by two of Long's 11 points, and the Cougars never looked back, winning 76-48.

 

Pulaski will play Blue Ridge District champion William Fleming in tonight's Region III quarterfinal at Fleming. It'll be a rematch for the Cougars, who lost to Fleming last year. The teams split two games this season.

 

Pulaski coach Mark Hanks said he was happy his team bounced back after a disappointing loss to Blacksburg on Saturday in which the Cougars gave up a 15-point lead and lost the River Ridge District tournament championship.

 

"After what happened to us the other night, giving up a big lead, I thought mentally we needed" to pull away against Amherst, Hanks said. "Coming out in the second half, we're up 12, and pushing it up to 20 -- that was big.

 

"We tend to play like that when we shoot [well]. We made 3s. The players feed off that."

 

The Cougars (15-13) made seven 3-pointers. Nubian Peak and Ryan Adams each came off the bench to hit a pair of them.

 

The referees let both teams play hard. Nobody fouled out, and the effects could be seen in the number of turnovers.

 

The Lancers (10-12) gave up the ball nine times in the second quarter when the Cougars pulled away. Amherst only scored five points in the third quarter, and had eight turnovers.

 

"I thought the style of play was extremely rough and rugged," Amherst County coach Eddie Carter said. "It was a lot of banging and beating out there. We're not used to that style of play. We just did not respond very well to it.

 

"If you let [Hanks'] team do that, his defense will murder you. They murdered us."

 

The Cougars caused the majority of the Lancers' turnovers with full-court presses.

 

Dunnigan, who scored 13 points, helped put the game away in the third quarter with eight straight points. The Cougars led by 25 points by the end of the period.

 

Dunnigan said he felt good knowing he came out early to work on his shots. It was an easy decision for him to make.

 

"The gym was open," he said. "Why not start shooting?"

 

 

 

AMHERST COUNTY (10-12)

 

Poe 2 0-0 4, Gibson 1 1-2 4, J.Rose 3 0-0 6, P.Rose 3 0-0 6, Ware 1 0-0 3, Scruggs 2 0-0 6, B.Rose 2 1-2 5, Madison 1 0-0 2, McCray 0 1-2 1, McCoy 4 3-3 11. Totals 19 6-9 48.

 

PULASKI COUNTY (15-13)

 

Peak 3 0-0 8, Poindexter 2 0-2 4, Brown 5 2-4 13, Long 5 1-2 11, Harris 1 1-1 3, Dunnigan 6 1-3 13, King 1 0-0 3, Adams 5 0-0 12, Paris 1 0-0 2, Webb 2 0-0 5, Cox 1 0-0 2. Totals 32 5-12 76.

 

Amherst County 15 13 5 15 -- 48

 

Pulaski County 13 27 18 18 -- 76

 

3-point goals -- Amherst County (Scruggs 2, Gibson, Ware), Pulaski County (Peak 2, Adams 2, Brown, King, Webb). Total fouls -- Amherst County 10, Pulaski County 7.