Lyons, GA. – January 8, 2023 | Coach Jared Goodwin
On Friday night, the Hoop Dawgs got back to region play on the road against Appling County, and the Dawgs were able to make the trip to Baxley a really good one.
The first quarter was very entertaining for the fans, as both teams were able to score early and often. Mike Polke was able to get the scoring going early for the Dawgs and scored five points by himself. Jesus Quintero chipped in a couple early baskets as well. The game was fast-paced early on, and the Dawgs were able to hold on to a slim margin after the first quarter with a score of 22-19.
In the second quarter, the defense settled in and did a good job of slowing Appling County down. Toombs’ offense wasn’t completely clicking, but they were able to get some scoring going to help extend the lead heading into halftime. At halftime, the Dawgs led 34–23.
The third and fourth quarters were when the defense continued to play well, the offense started clicking, and the Dawgs started attacking the rim. These quarters were full of thunderous dunks that brought the crowd to their feet. Marion James had a powerful put-back dunk off of a missed shot that got the crowd going. A couple of possessions later, coming down in transition, Jesus Quintero connected with Dominic Eason on an alley-oop, and Eason dunked over an Appling defender. A minute later, the same two connected on another alley-oop, giving the fans a show. The Dawgs were much better offensively in the second half and continued to defend well, outscoring Appling 44-25 in the second half. The lead was increased to as much as 33 points. The final score was 78–48.
The Dawgs had four players in double figures scoring and were led by Dominic Eason, who had 21 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 blocks. Demetrius Cutler had 13 points and 6 rebounds, Jesus Quintero had 12 points and 3 assists, and Marion James had 10 points and 8 rebounds.
They will return to region play this Tuesday when they host Tattnall County at 7:30 p.m., followed by another region game on Friday against Windsor Forest, who is currently in first place in the region.
