Eliot Sain of Westwood basketball
Composure ending up being the deciding factor on Saturday as the Westwood Rockets defeated Huntland 37 to 31 in the Duck River Valley Conference Tournament play-in game at the Joel Vinson Gym. In a game marred by a technical foul call on a Huntland player and the ejection of a Huntland parent, Coach Will Pannell and his Rocket team kept their cool in a contentious 2nd half. The Rockets battled back from a 7 point deficit in the 3rd quarter to advance to Wednesday’s quarterfinal round at Cascade.
Leading by 3 points at the half, Huntland stretched their lead to 7 in the first 2 and a half minutes of the 3rd quarter before the wheels fell off of the Hornet train. Brady Nugent hit a pair of free throws awarded to Westwood after Huntland’s top scorer overreacted to an official’s decision. That technical foul call triggered a chorus of displeasure from the Huntland fans directed at the game’s referees. The remainder of the 3rd quarter saw Westwood finish on a 10 to 2 run and also saw a Huntland fan removed from the gym.
Westwood was a remarkable 8 for 10 at the free throw line in the 3rd quarter comeback. Eliot Sain led the free throw barrage as he was 7 of 8 from the free throw line in the 2nd half and finished the game with 7 points. Trent Thompson and Wyatt Nugent led the Rockets in scoring as each finished with 8 points. Will Partin was a perfect 4 for 4 at the line and finished with 4 points.
Westwood will take on the tournament’s #1 seed Cascade on Wednesday night in the tournament’s semifinals. That game will tip-off at 6 PM.
