PG Reserves Hungry For Playing Time

PRAIRIE GROVE — The red hot shooting of 6-3 junior Nick Pohlman continued in Prairie Grove’s 70-39 whitewashing of Haas Hall Academy on Dec. 6.

Pohlman came in off a 9-for-9, 21-point performance against West Fork the night before and stretched his streak of two games without missing a shot to an overall 16-of16 with a 19-point outing against the Mastiffs. Pohlman made all 7 of his shots and 4-of-4 free throws to pace the Tigers with 19 points.

Junior Will Pridmore had 13 points and senior guard D.J. Pearson chipped in 8, but the Tigers didn’t need a whole lot more. Twelve Tigers graced the scorebook as Prairie Grove emptied the bench in the fourth quarter. Soggie Holcomb had 4 quick points, including a steal and uncontested layup. Brandon Davidson converted a 3-point play, then hit a free-throw line jumper. The reserves demonstrated a real hunger for playing time by hustling all over the court.

Senior Mark Dory followed a Tiger steal and missed layup by finishing the play. Sophomore guard Carl Von Bergen used dribble penetration to draw the defense, then dished to junior Brandon LeDuc, who knocked down a 15-footer.

Prairie Grove coach Steve Edmiston was happy to see the offense start to pick up, although senior Demarkus Cooper was held out as a precautionary measure. Pohlman took his spot in the starting lineup.

“With Nick Pohlman coming in, shooting the way he is, he hasn’t missed a shot in two games,” Edmiston said. “He’s got confidence in his stroke. He was 7-for-7 from the field tonight and 4-of-4 at the foul line. Tonight, we did a better job with ball-movement, we’re sharing. Where we struggled offensively, hopefully we’ll continue to get better. Everybody was good on the boards, with giving us second chances.”

MARK HUMPHREY ENTERPRISE-LEADER Prairie Grove 6-3 junior Nick Pohlman elevates to shoot a baseline jumper over two Haas Hall defenders. Pohlman made all 7 of his field goal attempts in the Tigers’ 70—39 blowout win over the Mastiffs Dec. 6.