Quagmire

Could we have a developing situation?

I'm sticking with my Panthers in this one despite most predicting their demise. Once again senior leadership and experience will play a role. Playing at the Fieldhouse is nothing new for Augusta. They have lots of experience on this floor and won't be intimidated by it or the Royals. The Panthers are 6-2, the Royals are 6-1. Should be a good one. So happy to be court side to see this one!

And discounted wings on Tuesday!!

I know the Augusta/Mason Co. game will be on WFTM 95.9 or soft96.com for Mason County. Augusta's broadcast can be found on augustaathletics.org

I can give you scoring, that's all I keep when broadcasting. Maddox 14 Snapp 9 Shoemaker 8 Crawford 6 Woodruff 6 Pugh 5 White 4 Staggs 2 Laycock 2 Cordle 2 Purdon 2 Spradlin and McElfresh played but did not score.

Nice clarifacation. Cut me some slack though, it was 3:39am!!

Not much to see here as the score indicates. Was nice to see the Panthers moving the ball well together. Worked much better together than they did against Pendleton (L) and Ripley (W). Very balanced scoring led by Maddox with 14.

So it looks like CC had a lineup change. What was it? Can't be a big secret. And 4 points from Art Walker, the best shooter in the 10th region? Shooters find a way.

Panthers pull away in the second half in this one. Snapp had a little more luck tonight. Shoemaker continued his offensive struggles. Team looks to get back in the groove on Friday night at home vs. Heritage Academy. It's a boy/girl doubleheader with the boys playing first at 6pm. Unofficial scoring Augusta - Crawford 18, Maddox 16, Snapp 10, Staggs 7, Pugh 6, Shoemaker 2, Laycock 2, Spradlin 2 Ripley - Hatfield 10, Dunn 9, Moran 7, Marshall 5, Deaton 5, Slowey 4, Griffith 2, Holmes 1, Adams 1, Himes 1 AHS 13 28 45 63 RHS 12 25 32 45

Thanks Oldercoach and LCDAWGS19, good to know I wasn't alone in my assessment of the officiating. Well, I wouldn't be alone, the Augusta faithful made their voices heard as well!! Purplepride92 I'll never deny my passion for my Augusta Panthers. It's one of those reasons we love sports!!

Well I will say this, there are parts of it that are very entertaining. Despite the loss, we had a good time. Way too early in the season to treat it like it's the end of the world.

Credit to PC in this one. Very steady team that always seem to hit the big shots they needed while the Panthers struggled to hit shots in the the same situations. Regardless of the outcome, good early test for both squads. On the broadcast I let my frustration get the best of me when we attacked the basket and came up empty in points and fouls. My apologies to anyone listening that got tired of me whining. I'll make sure I do a better job tomorrow night. Back to the game, Dontaie Allen is as advertised. He does a nice job of not forcing but when he gets it, something exciting just might happen. And Hunter Wood is one of the most underrated point guards in the region IMO. These two teams could certainly meet again down the road.

I'm really excited for this one and I'll have a great seat calling this one for the Panthers up on the stage. So if you can't make it you can listen by going to http://www.augustaathletics.com Also in between games three very deserving individuals will be inducted into Augusta's Hall of Fame. Current coach and former player, Brian Kirk, former player and coach Dana Bach and longtime bookkeeper Brian Flaugher. I don't expect there to be many empty seats so if you're planning on attending I would get there early!! The girls game will start at 6pm.

This.......thread......won't......die....

This game was never in doubt. Augusta jumped out to a 24-9 lead after 1 quarter and allowed Lloyd to creep a little closer on a few occasions, the closest being 7. And as they have shown in their previous games, they never got rattled, just continued to do their job, knowing what they were doing was working and would produce points eventually. They know those points are going to come from somewhere and you can see the satisfaction on their faces whether they've made the assist or the shot. Their balance on the scoreboard makes them dangerous every time they take the floor, as if they weren't dangerous enough as it is.

Lots of potentially good match ups could happen!! Adding to the ones in the first round of course!

Win. Gaudy numbers look great on paper but unless they are paired with a win they only look good for the player IMO.

Yes they will. Just like against Bracken County, senior leadership and experience should give the Panthers the edge in my humble opinion.

I called the two keys to victory would be senior leadership and experience and those were spot on as the Panthers battled to victory. The surprise addition to it all was the emergence of Jarod Shoemaker. His career high 21 points were huge for Augusta esp in the 1st quarter when Maddox's touches were few and far between. Can't forget Jack Laycock either. He's becoming more and more reliable off the bench allowing Coach Kirk to give starters much needed rest. A little confidence mixed with some pt can go a long way. Cam Snapp had his biggest game so far this season and is a beast underneath. Owens Crawford didn't have a flashy game, may have even went unnoticed to some but his ball handling can eat up lots of clock when needed. Tanner Pugh was very steady with the ball as well. And he works his tail off on defense. Just might need to give opponents a step or two when guarding them. And Connor Maddox was, well, Connor Maddox. If you watched him last year and this year you'll see the maturity this season. Never forced a shot. Just kept waiting for his moment to come and boy did it ever. This game was one of the epic AHS/BCHS contests there has ever been. It was the first ot game between the two since the 02-03 season when the Panthers won, 64-61 also in double ot. Head coach Brian Kirk scored 18 points for the Panthers that night. Since the 11-12 season Augusta is 12-2 vs their bitter county rivals. Next scheduled matchup is in February 13th in Augusta but the two squads could meet in the All A semifinals as well.

This^

I'm sure Coach would be happy to know he's got fans out there. Great coach, great guy, great storyteller!!

Came away so impressed with Augusta tonight. The way they continued to battle back time and again shows the veteran leadership that they have. Hard to believe that they were down 13-1 after one quarter and didn't even hit a field goal until about halfway through the 2nd quarter! Campbell just could not pull away because the Panthers just kept fighting. Trailing 31-24 at the half Augusta would lose Camryn Snapp just 30 seconds into the 3rd quarter as he picked up his 3rd and 4th fouls. Campbell County took advantage of his absence to the tune of an 18 point lead. But once again the Panthers came storming back. Much credit goes to Jack Laycock and Stephen Cordle for the work they did down low on Matt Wilson. They couldn't always stop him but he knew they were there. And we are talking about two guys with very minimal varsity experience working against the region's top player. Once again in pressure situations the Panthers handled the ball well and fought through adversity but just fell a bit short. I think Augusta proved a lot tonight. Trust me, through the years there haven't been many Panther teams that take the floor every night, no matter who the opponent, and believe they should win. This is such a team. If you get the chance to see these boys in action make the trip. It is very early but I think we are on the brink of something very special.

I'm picking Augusta (shocker) in this one. I was very impressed with this team in the two scrimmages they played and in the three games they have played this season. This is easily one of the most athletic teams I have seen in Augusta as well as disciplined. Senior leadership and big game experience will play a huge role in this game as the Panthers improve to 3-1.

You can go to Augusta Independent Schools for the link to listen to tonight's Augusta/Campbell County championship game of the Huck Turner Tip-Off Classic in Cynthiana.

On another topic, Augusta looked very strong at times on offense moving and sharing the ball really well.