county showdown at PCHS

By STEVEN G. WATSON

Sports Editor

If the last two games the Goshen Eagles and the Pike County Bulldogs have played against each other on the hardwood are any indication, there could be a barn burning in Brundidge tonight.

Last year the teams met twice with GHS notching two dramatic victories. The first on a game-winning shot by Jamar Tucker with 42 seconds left to put the Eagles ahead 61-60 and the second was another close one with Goshen pulling out the two-point victory 56-54.

Both teams will look to get back on track in the battle of county foes. The Bulldogs are coming off a poor showing against Enterprise in their home-opener on Tuesday which they dropped 69-43 and the Eagles have some burnt wings after a 70-55 loss to Clayton on the road.

PCHS head coach David Buehler is optimistic, but knows his young group of Bulldogs will have their hands full with a talented Goshen team visiting.

"It will be hard coming off the loss to Enterprise and then trying to build going into a game against a tough team like Goshen, but I feel like our guys will play harder," Buehler said. "They know these kids and want to play them so I think it’s good for all concerned. The only thing I’m looking for is effort and I think we’ll see that tonight.

"I think we just have to play harder and play like a team. We’re a very young squad and we’re going to have our good games and our bad. I knew going in it was going to be up and down, but we can’t dwell on the negative, we have to just build from the positive." he added.

The Eagles will have something to prove to their coach as well. After their performance against Clayton, head coach Major Lane was obviously disappointed.

"We just played pitiful," Lane said. "We missed nine layups and 14 free throws. It wasn’t really what they did, but what we didn’t do. But the guy’s have come out and worked hard for me this week to put the loss behind them. I’d rather make the mistakes early then later on during the season."

As far as the Bulldogs are concerned, Lane doesn’t know as much about this year’s team as he would like, but expects a dogfight no matter who takes the floor.

"I don’t really know that much about this Pike County team, because I think that they had 7 or 8 seniors last year, but I know that they’ll be aggressive and get after us," Lane said. "Coach Buehler always does a good job getting those guy’s ready. In this one you can throw the records out. There should be a big crowd, because this is the first in county rivalry all year. I think that people who love the game of basketball will be there to watch this one."

Buehler is hoping for a large crowd as well. He feels this is the type of game basketball fans can really enjoy inside the county. With the closeness of the two schools and the players knowing each other they will play at a different level that should be very entertaining.

"We hope to see a pretty good crowd," Buehler said. "It was crowded last year so we expect the gym to be full again. I really think this will be a good game and a good time for those who decide to come out and watch some quality high school basketball. I think this kind of thing is great for the county as a whole."

Tipoff time for the first game is 5 p.m. with both junior varsity teams squaring off first and the girls’ varsity to follow.