Panthers season ended by future Tech quarterback
Nesbitt keeps Tigers alive
By JARED PUTNAM Union Sentinel Editor

Sentinel photo/Jared Putnam Michael Ross scored 12 points against the Tigers.

Josh Nesbitt signed to be a quarterback for Georgia Tech next year, but turns out, he isn't a bad basketball player either. Nesbitt was more solid than spectacular as his Greene County Tigers faced the Panthers last Wednesday night, but when it mattered the most, his clutch play allowed the Tigers to pull out a narrow 63-61 win.

"Any ball that hit his hands was his, without a doubt," Panthers Head Coach Tim Hunter said. "He was a very, very strong player for them. He made a lot of big plays, and that [kind of play] is why he's going to be playing division one football. I know that's still a different sport, but if you are a division one level athlete, you are such a phenomenal athlete that you can pretty much do what you want. He hurt us down the stretch."

The game was tight from the outset, as Greene showed how dangerous they were from outside the arc, but Michael Ross responded with early treys of his own to keep the score close. The Panthers held a 13-12 lead when Taylor Neely scored inside to push the lead to 15-12.

Sentinel photo/Jared Putnam Colton Payne keeps the ball away from the defender.

"Taylor Neely was really the one that got a spark going in the first half," Coach Hunter said. "We were a little bit intimidated for the first few minutes, and then Taylor just started getting the ball and taking it at them and getting fouls and baskets. That was a really big moment for us."

Cody Adams added a bucket to push the advantage to 17-12 as the first quarter ended. Caleb Kelly dropped one in as the second quarter began, giving the Panthers a 19-12 lead that would be their biggest of the night. The Tigers defense clamped down for more than three minutes after that, holding Union scoreless as they tied the game 19-19 with 4:40 left before halftime.

The Panthers snapped out of the slide as Ryan Burks hit a pair of free throws and Austin Collins buried a jump shot to put Union back on top 23-19. "Austin did a great job getting to the hole and had some good success in there attacking them," Coach Hunter said.

The Tigers responded, and banked in a three-pointer to reclaim the lead 26- 25 with 2:10 remaining in the quarter. Corey Garrett then scored consecutive baskets, the second on an assist from Colton Payne, to put the Panthers ahead 29-26. The Tigers then missed a shot with under 10 seconds remaining, and the ball bounced on top of the backboard, but no whistles were blown. The Panthers did not have enough time to get the ball downcourt for a decent shot.

Sentinel photo/Jared Putnam Taylor Neely provided a spark against star athlete Josh Nesbitt.

In the third quarter Corey Garrett picked up where he left off in the second period, knocking down a three point play that extended the Panthers lead to 32-26. However, Green responded once again, going on a 9-2 run that put them ahead 35-34. The Panthers climbed back on top 38-35 with 2:23 left in the third, but Greene held a 44-43 advantage when the quarter closed.

The Tigers looked as if they might pull away as the fourth quarter began, knocking down a three and another two to push their lead to 49-43. Cody Adams gave Union a spark, as he drove in three times to help the Panthers get seven quick points. His first layup was blocked, but Collins followed up to put it in the hoop. Adams was fouled on his second drive, leading to a three-pointplay. Another foul led to a pair of free throws by Adams, giving Union a 50-49 lead with 5:32 remaining.

Sentinel photo/Jared Putnam A Tigers player tries to stop one of Michael Ross' threes.

The Tigers reestablished a 54-50 lead and still led 57-52 with under four minutes left to play. Ross hit another three-pointer to narrow the gap to 57-55 and Neely completed a three-point play to bring the Panthers within a point at 59-58. The Panthers evened the score 61-61 when Collins hit a three with 1:58 to play.

The Tigers appeared to score with 1:12 left but the basket was waved off when the refs called them for a charge on Burks. Greene would get another chance on a fast break and although Nesbitt's layup rattled out, the Panthers were called for goal tending. Union had one last chance, but the final shot fell short, and Nesbitt leaped over everyone to knock the ball away for the 63-61 win.

"Our guys played hard against a good Greene County team," Coach Hunter said. "They didn't play scared and had a good chance to win the ballgame. [But Greene is] really a class program. They acted with complete sportsmanship the whole time. They shake hands, they don't run their mouths, and they are a well-coached team."

Corey Garrett shoots over a leaping Tigers defender.

While Nesbitt had many clutch plays, the Tigers Gerald Dunn did the bulk of the scoring damage, tallying 23 point by hitting several deep three-pointers while guarded.

Coach Hunter said that in a close game against such an athletic team, a few mistakes can make all the difference. "We didn't execute as well as we had to at the end and when we got Nesbitt in [foul] trouble in the first half, we should have capitalized more than we did," the coach said. "I don't think we sensed the urgency in that."

Coach Hunter said that he hopes to plot out a tougher schedule next year, to get his team ready for the type of athleticism they will face come playoff time. "I wish we could play them a couple of times in the regular season just to get ready for that level of intensity," the coach said. "That's something I'm trying to do next year, is pick up some of these athletic teams to play in the second half of the year. Those are the kind of teams you have to get used to playing and get used to beating."

Looking back

Asked how he feels he has grown in his rookie year as Head Coach, Hunter said that much of where he matured came in the area of learning how to deal with the level of intensity and pressure that comes with the job. "I've been the soccer coach for eight years now and there's always stuff you learn, but [this job] was a big adjustment because even though I have been a head coach before, the head basketball coach at Union County is a high pressure job. The intensity level that goes on during the ballgames, thats the stuff I have to get better at." The coach pointed to time management as an area where he has improved and wants to continue to improve.

"Ultimately I'm disappointed that we didn't win the region, but I'm proud of my guys," Coach Hunter said. "We had the second highest winning total in the regular season that we've had here and I wouldn't trade being in that locker room with them for anywhere else in the state."

The coach had nothing but praise for his players, including the seven seniors that he will be losing. "My seniors had four coaches in four years and they could have really been a problem, but instead of being a problem, they have been a blessing for our team," the coach said. "They came out and practiced hard and were good leaders. I'm really proud of all my guys in how they've handled themselves and how hard they have played. Alot of people don't realize how much adversity my kids have been through. I've got a lot of kids that have had a lot of traumatic things in their lives leading up to this. Rather than letting that be a chip on their shoulder they come out here and act like great young men, guys that you are proud to have represent you."

Looking back on the season, Coach Hunter said that one word can best describe the year. "If I think about one word that I believe can really sum up our season it is pride. The pride that I have in the kids, the pride that they have in our team, and the pride that our team shares with our school and our community. From that perspective we did all those things right.

"I would do anything to keep this bunch of guys around forever. Not just because of the talent, but because of the effort and the things they do at practice. I was very fortunate to have this talented of a team my first year, but more importantly than that is that I was very fortunate that they believed in what I was doing and came out there and worked hard with the right attitude toward making this a very positive program.

Looking ahead

While in many ways it is too early to look ahead to next season, one obvious hurdle that the Panthers will be faced with is the problem of overcoming a significant loss of size. Of their seven seniors, only one, starting point guard Colton Payne, is a guard. Corey Garrett, Taylor Neely, Caleb Kelly, Kody Owenby, Matt Schmidt, and Ian Thomas, are all sizeable post players who will be graduating with no obvious replacements.

Still, Coach Hunter said that the offense will only be altered, not changed entirely.

"I'm a post-oriented coach, that's just what I have always believed in," Coach Hunter said. "This year we were fortunate to have some post players who stepped up. We would grind you and pound it. Next year we're still not going to change that, but we may have to approach it differently. Instead of having Corey Garrett and Taylor Neely inside it might be Michael Ross or Austin Collins. Alot of people don't realize just how well Austin and Michael can score inside.

"So we're probably going to spread the floor more, and we're going to go inside but it might be one on one from the free throw line instead of one on one from the block. [It depends] on how some of these young guys step up and do what they need to do in the offseason."