In the first quarter the Mason County student section chanted "Overrated" at Bach after he missed two or three straight shots.

 

Not exactly what I would call a smart move. :lol:

Oh me of little faith!!!

 

Congratulations to Coach Hinson and the Panthers. I am SO happy for you. Great season made even better, and you earned this one, drawing the Royals in the Fieldhouse.

 

Hot time in the old town tonight!!!

Ol' papa just got in from the not-quite-local auction house, and what to my wondering eyes appear - but a win by A-town over the Royals of Mason County!

 

Congrats to Mr. Bach and company on what looks to have been a great-shooting game. Good luck as you progress through the post-season.

Congrats to Augusta for for the HUGE win!

Is this the biggest win in Augusta's history?

So happy for coach Hinson and his Panthers!! HUGE WIN!

Oh me of little faith!!!

 

Congratulations to Coach Hinson and the Panthers. I am SO happy for you. Great season made even better, and you earned this one, drawing the Royals in the Fieldhouse.

 

Hot time in the old town tonight!!!

 

You weren't the only one, my friend. I had a couple of Panthers faithful point out that I predicted they would lose.

 

Total team effort by Augusta tonight. Bach was Bach, getting 31 points. He was money from the free throw line, going 12-12. Heck, the whole team was on fire from the charity stripe, going 18-20. The big swing in the game occurred in the 2nd quarter when Augusta, leading 22-21, went on an 8-0 run. Royals scored 4 in response, but then freshman guard Connor Maddox drilled a 3 at the buzzer, making it 33-25 at intermission. That was a huge stretch IMO.

 

Maddox went on to score the first 7 points of the 3rd quarter. When Mason trimmed the lead to 40-34 another Augusta freshman, forward Camryn Snapp hit a long bomb extending the lead back out to 9. From there the Panthers went on a nice run. A Bach 3 gave the Panthers a 55-38 lead & eventually a 57-42 lead going into the final frame.

 

Give Mason County credit, though...they battled back the entire final quarter. Shawn Johnson was strong down low, as was Steven Chambers. Alex Stahl hit a pair of 3's in the 4th. Twice, I believe, Mason County cut the lead to 5 points--61-56 & 66-61. But Bach, Kelsch & Owens Crawford each hit a pair of free throws to close the scoring at 72-61.

 

Perimeter shooting (10-22 3pt. FG's) & free throw shooting (18-20), along with patient half court offense were the keys for Augusta. Not to mention they received big plays from a lot of different players. Senior Tanner Kelsch was so good all night long. He's one of the most intelligent players I have watched all season. He rarely tries to force anything & is as good a senior leader as you'll find in this Region. Brent Bach is this team's best player, without question. But I firmly believe Tanner Kelsch is the backbone of the squad.

 

As for Mason County, I don't think they played badly at all. Shawn Johnson was a monster, as evidenced by 21 points & 17 boards. From my perspective, he did not get the ball nearly enough tonight. I'll bet he didn't miss 3 shots all night long, but probably didn't shoot more than a dozen times. Augusta had no answer for him in the paint, yet he didn't get very many touches. He probably scored 6 or 8 points on offensive rebounds/putbacks.

 

Chambers & Dorian Henry, Mason's other bigs, also played well. Royals did a lot of damage on the offensive glass--not only in getting the boards, but also scoring on second chance opportunities. Guard play is really what did Mason County. I don't remember what they shot from 3, but I'm guessing 5-20.

 

But the night belonged to Augusta. Hard-earned victory & I'm happy for my friend Jason Hinson. Enjoy it Coach! :thumb:

 

Looking forward to the Thursday battle between Bracken & Augusta. While I was rooting for the Panthers tonight, I'm a Polar Bear through & through. Will get back to cheering for the Orange & Black come Regional tourney time.

Panthers end Royals' reign atop district

With the win tonight Coach Hinson has beaten Mason 2 times in 2 weeks with the Freshman team and now the varsity. The Freshman cut down the nets for district and regional for Hinson could this be a new trend for A-town? 3 Freshman played a key role in win tonight and make a nice supporting cast for Bach and company. Congrats and goodluck. A party in A-Town tonight before a tough road ahead for Thursday and next week.

RP - thanks for the outstanding play by play. You made it even a greater game! Congrats to Augusta!

 

Thanks. I have fun doing those updates.

Love to see the little guy knock off the big guy. Congrats to the players and coaches.

Congrats to the Panthers and the town of Augusta. They should be very proud of their boys.

Another classic game at the fieldhouse, Augusta needed a complete game and flat out played one. Congrats to Coach Hinson and the Panthers.

Bach was his normal self... The other team members from Augusta hit open shots and thats

what ended up being the killer of the Royals.

 

Although I root on Mason County couldn't help but be really happy for the kids from Augusta;

Good luck to them the rest of the way. Really a fun team to watch play the game.

"And David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone and slung it and struck the Philistine on his forehead."