By Nathan Deen
Published on February 13, 2008
Men’s Game: Wednesday, Feb. 13
Okaloosa Walton 74, PJC 73
Shooting a free throw would probably seem to be the easiest shot one could take in a game of basketball. There is no one to guard you and put a hand in your face and you can take as much time as you need. But under pressure, shooting free throws can be as difficult as any shot.
In an air-tight game, PJC forward Eugene Blue got to the foul line twice within the last three minutes of regulation and made only one of his four attempts. The Pirates as a team shot just 56 percent from the foul line, which is about their average for the season, and lost the game by one point.
“It’s been the story of our season,” said head coach Paul Swanson, whose team is 0-9 in the conference and has lost a handful of close games.
After leading 31-29 at halftime, PJC started the second half sluggishly. Okaloosa Walton got out to a double-digit lead and led by as much as twelve points with 10:14 remaining in the game. But PJC stormed back into the game with a 16-4 run.
“I knew at that point we had to suck it up,” said Swanson.
Down 63-57 with 7:30 remaining, PJC forward Petras Balocka scored nine straight points for the Pirates and hit two consecutive three pointers that caused an amazing roar from the home crowd.
The game was tied at 70 when Blue went to the line with 2:58 left to play and missed both free throw attempts. Okaloosa Walton went to the line twice and made two out of four attempts to give the Raiders a 72-70 lead with 2:15 remaining. Blue tried to atone for the missed free throws by tying the game with a field goal with 1:17 remaining.
With PJC down 74-72 with :40.8 remaining, Blue went to the line once more with a chance to tie but only made one out of two. PJC was able to get the last possession and called timeout with :6.8 seconds left. The inbound pass went to sophomore guard Lasha Parghalava who then passed it to the wing to wide open guard Virgil Philistin for the would be game winning three-pointer, which rimmed out.
“When that shot went up,” said Swanson, “I said ‘Yes!’ I thought we were going to have a miracle win.”
PJC executed their game plan in containing Okaloosa Walton’s deadly three-point shooters. OW shot just 6/27 from behind the arc, but was able to make up for it by competing with PJC in the post. Josh Hunter and Lashun Watson scored a total of 42 points inside.
“Lashun Watson stepped up and did a great job carrying us when our outside shooting wasn’t there,” said OW head coach Bruce Stewart. “Josh Hunter…was his usual workhorse self.”
Balocka finished with 21 points and 13 rebounds. Blue finished with 16 points.
Despite yet another disheartening loss, Swanson said he and his team are still going to hold their heads high.
“I’m proud of our guys that we haven’t folded the tent,” said Swanson. “You never lose until you give up. Tonight we just ran out of time.”
Women’s Game
Okaloosa Walton 60, PJC 67
In an outstanding team effort, the PJC Lady Pirates got a big win at home against Okaloosa Walton. The game was close throughout. OW seemed to be gaining the momentum in the second half, but PJC did not let them pull away.
With 5:06 remaining, the Lady Pirates took their first lead of the second half since losing it just 1:43 into the half. The game was tied at 58 with 2:33 remaining when PJC closed the game on a 9-2 run.
Defense proved to be a pivotal factor as the Lady Pirates forced some late turnovers on critical possessions for OW. The Lady Raiders were forced to foul and PJC was able to hit enough free throws to seal the win.
PJC head coach Chanda Rigby said her team executed their game plan well. The Lady Pirates did a solid job of defending the post, grabbing rebounds and guarding the perimeter.
“Pensacola did a very good job of offensive rebounding,” said OW head coach Brittney Ezell, “and we didn’t have a very competitive response down the stretch.”
PJC got solid contribution from each of their key players. Freshman guard Angelese Hunter led the team with 18 points. Sophomore guard Kristian Diggs had her best game of the season with 12 points and sophomore guard Victoria Hunt had 14 points.
Sophomore guard Andrea Kelly led OW with 16 points. Freshman guard Mary Fountain had nine points, sophomore guard Alexandra Sanabria also had nine points, and sophomore forward Geami Britt had eight points.
PJC improved to 5-6 in the conference with three games remaining. The Pirates and Lady Pirates will each face Gulf Coast (Feb 16.), Chipola (Feb. 20), and Tallahassee (Feb 23.). Their last home game will be played against Chipola next Wednesday.
