Dawsonville, Ga — On Friday, January 26th, the Pickens Dragons began a four game road trip inside region play as they headed to Dawson County to take on the Dawson Tigers. Coming into the game, the Dragons were 15-5, 6-1 in 7-AAA play, and riding a 7 game winning streak. The Tigers, came into the game 11-9, 4-4 in 7-AAA play, and looking to bounce back after a tough loss to Gilmer on Tuesday. On Friday, late game free throws from Trey Harvey and Caden Reed, helped propel the Tigers to a 50-48 win.

 

The first quarter began with McCord Purdy hitting a corner three to make it 3-0 Dragons. Parker Davis, followed with a lay up to make it 5-0. The Tigers got on the board after Reed drove the baseline and laid it in for the score. After another Parker Davis layup, Joshua Priest hit a three to make it 7-5. Harvey, would then split a pair of free throws to make it 7-6 Dragons.

Back to back buckets by the Davis brothers and a pair of free throws by Purdy, gave the Dragons a 13-6 lead. A basket by Ethan Parker, would put an end to the 6-0 run and make it 13-8. Hayden Jones, would then hit a three to make it 16-8. A bucket by Samuel Glover would cut the Dragons lead down to 16-10 going to the second quarter.

 

Harvey, got things going in the second quarter with a basket to cut the lead to 4. Back to back buckets from Purdy and Dodge Davis, stretched the lead out to 20-12. After a timeout by Dawson, the Tigers would go on a 5-0 run as Parker made a basket and Reed hit a three pointer to make it 20-17. A three pointer by Caleb Lanford would make it a 6 point game. Back to back three pointers from Reed and Parker would tie the game at 23.

The Tigers, would close the first half on an 8-0 run as Harvey and Priest would help Dawson take a 31-26 lead into the break over Pickens.

 

The third quarter started with Dodge Davis making a layup, and Lanford hitting a pair of free throws to cut the lead down to 1. Both Harvey and Jones would then split free throws as the Tigers led, 32-31. After a three pointer by Reed, Lanford would get three the hard way as he made the lay up and the free throw to cut it back to 1. A three pointer by Priest would again make it a 4 point game. A layup by Parker Davis would then cut that in half.

After a pair of free throws from Harvey, the Dragons would close out the third quarter on a 7-0 run as Purdy, the Davis brothers, and Jones all contributed to the run. Going to the fourth quarter, the Dragons led the Tigers, 43-40.

 

The fourth quarter began with Harvey making two free throws to cut the lead to 1. A layup by Dodge Davis, would bring it back to a 3 point lead. Reed, would get the basket and the foul as he tied things up at 45 after the free throw. Purdy, would give the lead back to the Dragons with a three to put them up 48-45. Harvey, after getting fouled, would step to the line and hit both free throws to make it a 1 point game.

After a missed three point attempt by the Dragons, the Tigers put the ball in Harvey’s hands as he drove the lane with the seconds ticking down. Harvey would go up for a shot attempt, and would be fouled. Harvey, would make both free throws to put the Tigers up, 49-48. Purdy, looking to push the ball up the floor, passed it ahead to Jones. The ball was tipped out of bounds, which stopped the clock.

After it was called Dragon ball, the two closest officials to the play discussed it further and changed the call to Tiger ball. The Dragons, were then forced to intentionally foul as Reed would go to the line for two shots. Reed, would split the free throws to make it 50-48. A last second attempt from half court by Purdy wouldn’t fall and the Tigers would come away with the 50-48 win.

 

Scorers for the Dragons:

McCord Purdy: 15 points

Parker Davis: 10 points

Dodge Davis: 10 points

Caleb Lanford: 8 points

Hayden Jones: 5 points

 

Scorers for the Tigers:

Trey Harvey: 17 points

Caden Reed: 15 points

Joshua Priest: 9 points

Ethan Parker: 7 points

Samuel Glover: 2 points

 

7-AAA Standings:

Gilmer: 14-6 (8-1)

Pickens: 15 -6 (6-2)

Dawson: 12-9 (5-4)

Lumpkin: 10-11: (4-5)

Wesleyan: 8-13 (3-5)

White County: 6-15 (2-6)

West Hall: 5-15 (2-7)

 

The Dragons, will be back in action on Tuesday, January 30th as they take on the Lumpkin Indians in what will be an interesting match up in 7-AAA. Both teams are coming off having 7 game win streaks snapped. The Dragons, defeated the Indians in Jasper on December 15th, but the Indians have been playing much better since that game. Tip off is set for 7:30.