Panthers bounce back after loss to Dawson
Union scores 103 against Tallulah, blows out Rabun
By JARED PUTNAM

Cody Adams goes full speed ahead through the lane.

Union 61 - Dawson 62

The Panthers goal of an automatic berth to the state tournament was put in jeopardy last Tuesday, after the team suffered what was only its second loss of the season, this time to rival Dawson County.

"We came out and played really flat. That's always a hard place to play and they came out shooting very well and playing very well," Head Coach Tim Hunter said. "We didn't play with anywhere near the level of intensity we needed to."

The problems began early as the Panthers found themselves down 25-14 at the end of the first quarter.

"We basically played our worst game of the season, without a doubt," Coach Hunter said. "The thing that I hate the most is that we played poorly at doing the things we take the most pride in. We didn't defend, we didn't rebound, and [didn't get going until] the second half." In the third quarter the Panthers outscored Dawson 15-11, and won the battle 22-19 in the fourth, but the would-be rally fell a little bit short. Union scored a final basket to cut the lead to 1, but Dawson held on for the 62-61 win.

Colton Payne beats his man for two points.

"We waited too long to start playing. We ended up having to foul them, and they hit 25 of 37 freethrows," said the coach.

Michael Ross shot well in the second half, scoring 14 of his team leading 16 points in the third and fourth quarters. Corey Garrett added 14 points, Taylor Neely scored 9, and Caleb Kelley and Austin Collins each had 8.

"In the positive sense it may have woken us up a little bit," Coach Hunter said. "It has focused us more at practice and the kids have been playing a lot harder as a result."

Union 103 - Tallulah Falls 54

When a team holds Michael Ross and Austin Collins to 27 points combined it could be considered a decent defensive showing. When a team allows Ross and Collins to combine for 27 points in the first quarter alone, it is the start of a long night. Ross and Collins scored 27 of the Panthers 36 first quarter points Saturday against Tallulah Falls, en route to an impressive 103-54 victory.

"We took Tallulah out of the game in the fist quarter. We came out playing," said Coach Hunter. "The thing about it is they are a good team. They are extremely talented. Their point guard had 36 points. We have not given up a 20 point scorer all season, and he had 26 in the first half."

Ian Thomas goes airborne before slinging a bounce pass into the post.

Coach Hunter said that the Panthers did a number of things to take their opponent out of the game early, such as taking a lot of charges and boxing out better than ever.

"When you hit shots and do things like that on the defensive end, you are going to win ballgames. You are not necessarily always going to win by 50," joked the coach, "but we happened to that night."

Every Panther in the game scored, led by Austin Collins 22 points. Taylor Neely poured in 15 points in the post while Michael Ross and Corey Garrett each scored 14.

Union 87 - Rabun 46

Much like the game against Tallulah Falls, the Panthers made a statement early, jumping out to an 11-0 lead against the Rabun Cats, as Michael Ross, Corey Garrett and Colton Payne all scored early.

When Rabun finally did answer with a basket of their own, Union responded with back-to-back threepointers from Ross and Austin Collins. The Panthers ran the lead up to 20 points with a 23-3 advantage on another Ross trey.

The lead held firm at 20 points as the Panthers were up 45-25 at the half. They continued to roll in the final two quarters, as the reserves continued to grow the lead, finishing with a 41 point win.

The Panthers had four in double figures despite the fact that several players, including Michael Ross, who led with 17 points, really only played two quarters. Taylor Neely and Corey Garrett each had 14 while Austin Collins scored 10. Matt Schmidt added 7 off the bench while Ian Thomas and Brad Beise each scored 6.