Bulldogs Grab Three Wins from the Rockwood Tigers
Greetings Bulldog Country! It's been 5 games since my last write-up. During that stretch, the boys have lost 2 important district games to Sunbright and Oliver Springs, the girls have had a coaching shakeup, and the season has rapidly started winding toward its close.
Tonight, the Boys Junior Varsity started us off against Rockwood in a sort of "micro-game". The teams had agreed on 6-minute quarters to start the game, so it seemed to fly by. Rockwood started off strong, looking like the stronger offense, as they jumped out to an early lead. The Bulldogs played feisty defense and put a mean full court press on that the Tigers couldn't handle. The Bulldogs ran away with this one by a score of 43-30 as this JV squad continues to be a tough out. Notable scoring performances by Daniel "Deebo" Bunch (9) and Cole "Milky Way" Wilson (8) led the Bulldogs to the victory.
In the night's second game, the Girls Varsity took the court. The Wartburg girls came into this one with a record of 6-15 - and unfortunately riding a 6-game losing streak. They were coming up against a 7-14 Rockwood team that they beat in mid-December. The new transitional coaching quartet of Kyle Ryans, Ashley Davis, Jason Davis, and Meghan Williams were able to put together a nice win tonight as the Lady Bulldogs appear to be re-finding their groove. Now is a good time to get their groove back with the end of the season approaching rapidly. Tournaments will be upon us soon! Great win Ladies!
In the final game of the night, the Boys Varsity took the floor. They also had a win against Rockwood in mid-December, and would love to add another win to their already 10-win season. In a somewhat low-scoring game for the Bulldogs, they squeaked out a 43-41 win over the Tigers behind big efforts from Lawson Swint (16) and the recently hot-shooting Evan Crouch (9). Weird stat of the night... outside of these 2 players, no other Bulldog had more than 4 points. So let's get into some of the other strange stats:
Tonight, the Boys Junior Varsity started us off against Rockwood in a sort of "micro-game". The teams had agreed on 6-minute quarters to start the game, so it seemed to fly by. Rockwood started off strong, looking like the stronger offense, as they jumped out to an early lead. The Bulldogs played feisty defense and put a mean full court press on that the Tigers couldn't handle. The Bulldogs ran away with this one by a score of 43-30 as this JV squad continues to be a tough out. Notable scoring performances by Daniel "Deebo" Bunch (9) and Cole "Milky Way" Wilson (8) led the Bulldogs to the victory.
In the night's second game, the Girls Varsity took the court. The Wartburg girls came into this one with a record of 6-15 - and unfortunately riding a 6-game losing streak. They were coming up against a 7-14 Rockwood team that they beat in mid-December. The new transitional coaching quartet of Kyle Ryans, Ashley Davis, Jason Davis, and Meghan Williams were able to put together a nice win tonight as the Lady Bulldogs appear to be re-finding their groove. Now is a good time to get their groove back with the end of the season approaching rapidly. Tournaments will be upon us soon! Great win Ladies!
In the final game of the night, the Boys Varsity took the floor. They also had a win against Rockwood in mid-December, and would love to add another win to their already 10-win season. In a somewhat low-scoring game for the Bulldogs, they squeaked out a 43-41 win over the Tigers behind big efforts from Lawson Swint (16) and the recently hot-shooting Evan Crouch (9). Weird stat of the night... outside of these 2 players, no other Bulldog had more than 4 points. So let's get into some of the other strange stats:
Quinney Inches Closer
It's been a great season to watch Sophomore-stud Paxton "Man Hands" Quinney grow into a serious threat. To prove my point, Quinney averaged a mere 5 points per game in the first 4 games of the season, but has averaged more than 11 points per game in our last 10 games. He's growing up right before our eyes! Coming into tonight's game, Paxton had a team-leading 195 points on the season. To grab that 200-point milestone, all he needed was 5... and he turned in a 4-point effort leaving him at 199 on the season... so, so close! Look for him to blow past 200 this Friday in the Jellico game.
Double Double Rockwood in Trouble
Lawson Swint consistently gives the Bulldogs an athletic aggressor in the post. He plays a little unhinged, almost craving contact, while he grabs rebounds and frustrates opponents down low. In a stark contrast sort of role, Swint can be seen moonlighting as a youth basketball referee on Saturdays in Wartburg. In tonight's contest, Swint was unstoppable. With his patented scissor-lift looking KT tape on his shins, he jacked up the Rockwood Tigers for a double-double to the tune of 16 points and 10 rebounds, and also knocking down 5/7 from the free throw line.
What's Gotten Into Evan Crouch???
This season has seen 5 players consistently vying for top-scoring honors... Ian Robinson, Johnny Bingham, Paxton Quinney, Landon Quinney, and Lawson Swint have all made a case, at times, as the leader in the clubhouse. But nobody on the team has been as hot as Evan Crouch across the last 3 games. Starting January 31 against Coalfield, Crouch's hot shooting led to a Bulldog single-game scoring high of 24 points for the season. Then, he followed that up with 19 more across his next 2 games. That makes Crouch's 3-game average OVER 14 POINTS PER GAME! To put it into perspective, the next best Bulldog is the aforementioned Swint with just shy of 10 points per game over the same stretch. That's hot shooting from the starting point guard!
It's Time to Finish Strong
At the beginning of the season, the Wartburg media day turned out a video where several Bulldog players were asked about their expectations and goals for the season. One by one, I remember hearing two responses that kept coming up... 1) Have a winning record, and 2) Win the District.
According to MaxPreps.com, last year's regular season ended with only 3 wins - and the 2019-20 season was the last time the Boys Varsity had a winning record. I can see why those things feel like high watermark goals. Here is the reality.... Sitting at 11-12 on the season with 2 games to go... winning both games would give the Bulldogs a 13-12 winning record... Let's go!
Additionally - both of our remaining games are district games. Sitting at 4-2 in the District - winning the next 2 would place us at #1 in the District headed into the tournament....
So if the goal is a winning record and win the district... I think we know what the assignment is... It's time to buckle down and get these next 2!
According to MaxPreps.com, last year's regular season ended with only 3 wins - and the 2019-20 season was the last time the Boys Varsity had a winning record. I can see why those things feel like high watermark goals. Here is the reality.... Sitting at 11-12 on the season with 2 games to go... winning both games would give the Bulldogs a 13-12 winning record... Let's go!
Additionally - both of our remaining games are district games. Sitting at 4-2 in the District - winning the next 2 would place us at #1 in the District headed into the tournament....
So if the goal is a winning record and win the district... I think we know what the assignment is... It's time to buckle down and get these next 2!
Overall, great wins for all three Wartburg teams tonight! It's been a great season so far, and there could be a long way to go... now is when you have to answer the question... "How Bad Do We Really Want It?"