Greenwood relishing good stretch
GREENWOOD — The Greenwood boys basketball team has had its ups and downs over the past few years, but the current Bulldogs are glad to be riding a wave of momentum that continued Friday at H.B. Stewart Bulldog Arena.
Greenwood won its fourth conference game in a row for the first time since 2012 with a 50-44 victory over Greenbrier in a 5A-West Conference matchup.
“We’ve got some experience, and we got a lot of positive things going on right now,” Greenwood Coach Donnie Husband said. “The kids are working hard. We have gotten better. There is no doubt we’ve gained a little confidence over the last two weeks.”
Greenwood (8-9, 4-3) got a team-high 15 points from Aiden Kennon and 11 points from Caleb Ligon. Greenbrier (5-11, 3-4) was guided by 14 off the bench from Rece Jones and 13 from Jacob Mathis.
The Bulldogs jumped out to an 18-9 advantage after the first quarter. The Panthers cut into that lead in the second quarter, but the Bulldogs enjoyed a surge late in the half for a 26-21 halftime lead.
Greenbrier used a 7-0 run in the third quarter to shrink Greenwood’s lead to 36-34. Greenwood then scored the final four points of the frame to take a 40-34 edge into the final quarter.
“When they cut it close in the third quarter, those are the times in the past we might have not played as well after that,” Husband said. “Things might not have gone as well. But then we went on a run.”
Greenwood turned to its defense and an efficient offense to close out the game. The Bulldogs missed just three shots from the field in the fourth quarter.
The Panthers cut the Greenwood advantage to 4844 with a shot behind the arc from Jace Dunlap with 1:39 left, but Greenwood didn’t allow any points after that.
“We’ve learned how to finish games,” Husband said. “We have gotten better making free throws. The biggest thing is we are playing good defense. We are making it tough for teams to score. It’s a cliche, but you can hang your hat on defense and give yourself a chance each night.”