varsity.roanoke.com

A year older and a year wiser, this could be a big year for Cave Spring boys basketball.

Holding steady in the clutch unlike last year's sophomore-dominated bunch, the Knights held off relentless guest Pulaski County in a 69-63 thriller Tuesday night as River Ridge District competition opened for both teams.

"When they came back and were up by one, 50-49, last year we would have folded," Cave Spring forward Clay Lacy said. "I think the experience from last year helped us a lot this year because we were able to stick in there, regain our composure, and come back and win."

The Knights (9-4) won for the fifth time in their last six outings. Pulaski County was similarly hot coming in having won five of its last six.

The Cougars trailed most of the second half but had a one-time eight-point deficit cut down to 65-63 when Clay White drove the lane for a layin with 26.3 seconds left. Adam Hager responded at the other end with a pair of foul shots. The Cougars never made another shot. Quintin Dill settled it with 10.5 seconds left with another pair of free throws. The Knights canned 13 of 20 foul shots as compared to 8-of-12 for Pulaski County.

"I told the guys, last year it was 48-48 with three minutes to go on our floor and they beat us 58-48," Cave Spring coach Billy Hicks said. "Their seniors took over and we folded. This team didn't fold. They hung tough."

The key to the game in the view of Cougars coach Mark Hanks was a four-minute stretch in the third quarter when Cave Spring's 6-foot-11 junior post Josh Henderson went to the bench with his third foul.

"We didn't take advantage quite like I thought," he said. "We got it back to about even, but we really gave away some opportunities. ... I thought we should have taken the lead. That was an opportunity really to attack."

"We did a good job of letting other players step up when he was out of the game," Lacy said.

Even so, Henderson finished with 18 points and eight rebounds. He added a couple of crucial blocked shots as the game was winding down.

"Once I got the third foul, I was playing conservatively trying not to foul," said Henderson, who never drew a fourth. "Then at the end of the game with about two minutes left, I decided there was no sense in playing conservatively and I should just be aggressive and go for the block ...."

Mark Overstreet of the Knights had a three-point play and scored seven of his 14 points in the fourth quarter. Dill had two of Cave Spring's six triples and also scored 14. Hager also added a pair of treys, the biggest being his swish at the 1:57 mark to make it 63-59. He finished with 10.

PULASKI COUNTY (7-4, 0-1)

N. Peak 7 2-5 16, Graham 2 0-0 5, White 3 1-2 7, Burgis 3 0-0 7, Mattox 2 2-2 6, Powell 5 1-1 11, T. Peak 1 0-0 2, Cox 1 0-0 2, Quesenberry 1 2-2 5, Samples 1 0-0 2. Totals 26 8-12 63.

CAVE SPRING (9-3, 1-0)

Dill 5 2-4 14, Overstreet 5 3-4 14, Hager 3 2-2 10, Lacy 3 2-2 8, Henderson 7 4-8 18, White 1 0-0 3, Jacobson 1 0-0 2. Totals 25 13-20 69.

Pulaski County 14 14 16 19 -- 63

Cave Spring 16 18 13 22 -- 69

3-point goals -- Pulaski County 3 (Graham, Burgis,. Quesenberry), Cave Spring 6 (Dill 2, Hager 2, White Overstreet). Total fouls -- Pulaski County 19, Cave Spring 14. Fouled out -- none. JV -- Cave Spring, 42-28