Foxes fend off Dawgs' fourth-quarter surge

The Runnin' Red Foxes held off a fourth-quarter surge by the Marlboro County Bulldogs Tuesday night to get a 57-52 win.

Both teams played with intensity to begin the game, and both teams used full-court presses.

The defense in the game showed as the score after the first quarter was 10-10.

However, in the second and third quarters, Hartsville used a match up zone defense and the press to keep the Bulldogs off of the scoreboard. The Foxes also out rebounded Marlboro County and played tougher inside the paint.

The Red Fox defense tightened up in the third quarter and only allowed Marlboro County 4 points in the entire quarter as Hartsville led by as many as 19 points.

The Bulldogs were not finished, however, as they scored 28 points in the fourth quarter and cut the lead down to two points with 4:14 left to play.

Hartsville had several turnovers in the fourth quarter, including three on consecutive possessions. Those turnovers gave the Bulldogs a chance to get back into the game.

The Foxes never lost the lead, however, and the players again showed composure in the final minutes of the game. Jordan Scott was 5 of 6 from the free throw line in the final three minutes, and guard Gavin Thomas was 4 of 6 in the same time span. Chavez Gattison also had two key free throws with 1:56 remaining to extend the Hartsville lead to 51-44.

The Red Fox defense was the key on the night. Marlboro County was unable to consistently break the Hartsville press, and the match up zone made the Bulldogs rely on their perimeter shooting.

Hartsville showed intensity on both sides of the ball for most of the game and certainly showed the edge in conditioning. The Bulldogs looked noticeably tired at the end of the game, which led to some mistakes the Foxes were able to capitalize on.

Hartsville's Demarcus Cook played well inside and finished the game with 11 points. The Foxes were led by Jordan Scott, who had 24 points including 9 of 11 from the charity stripe.

Marlboro County head coach James Pate said the environment in Hartsville is a difficult one in which to succeed. "Any time you play in a gym like this, it's tough," he said. "Hartsville did an outstanding job shooting free throws. We pressured them and got some steals. We make two or three shots here and there, and we're right back in the game. But Hartsville did what they needed to do."

Hartsville head coach Aric Samuel said the team is learning as they go. "We don't have a lot of big-game experience," he said. "Hopefully, (the team) learned from tonight and we got better."

Samuel said the Crestwood game and Tuesday night's close ending are key to success, however. "(Playing close games) definitely makes you better. There is always a lot of pressure in the first game at home. Those close games should make us better."

Samuel said although he was not pleased with the team giving up such a large lead, the game gives the team a lot of experience. "It teaches you two things. One - that a lead is never safe, and it also teaches how to keep a lead if we are so fortunate as to be in that situation again."

The Foxes’ record improves to 2-1 on the season. They will host rival Darlington tonight after the girls’ game at 6 p.m.