A turnover-plagued first half on Tuesday proved to be too much to overcome for the Fort Campbell boys’ basketball team in a 74-54 loss to Dawson Springs in the 2nd Region All ‘A’ tournament.
The Panthers snapped a three-game skid to advance to a semifinal matchup with University Heights Academy on Friday. The Falcons dropped their second straight on the heels of a four-game winning run to slip to 4-5.
Fort Campbell struggled early against the Panthers’ full-court press, and Rex Blue scored 12 points in the first quarter to pace Dawson Springs. The score was 11-0 before Dason Tate knocked down a three-pointer for the Falcons’ first points with almost three minutes played.
A 9-2 run to start the second quarter put Dawson Springs in control 34-14 after a steal and layup by Montgomery Johnston, part of a 16-point first half that pushed the junior past 1,000 career points. Maurice Moore closed the half with a putback just ahead of the buzzer, but the Falcons trailed 40-19 at the break.
Casey Fain carried the scoring load for the Panthers in the third with ten points, and the margin never dipped below 20 points. Tate closed the quarter with his third three-pointer of the night for the Falcons. Deacon Dever chipped in six for Dawson Springs, and the Panthers took a 23-point cushion into the final frame.
Dawson Springs led by as many as 29 in the fourth after Dever’s putback with 2:36 left before the Falcons scored the final nine points of the game.
The Panthers made four times as many free throws as Fort Campbell attempted, finishing 16/19 at the stripe. Dawson Springs won the rebounding battle as well, hauling down 40 to the Falcons’ 30, including 15 on the offensive glass.
Moore finished with 21 points and nine rebounds to lead all scorers, but no other Fort Campbell player reached double figures.
For Dawson Springs, Johnston finished with 20, followed by Blue with 18. Fain ended the night with 17, and Dever scored 12.
Fort Campbell has the rest of the week off before heading to Metropolis, IL for the Superman Classic January 16-20.
Dawson Springs 25 15 18 16 — 74
Fort Campbell 12 7 16 19 — 54
Dawson Springs (9-7) — Johnston 20, Blue 18, Fain 17, Dever 12, Plunkette 7
Fort Campbell (4-5) — Moore 21, Tate 9, Anthony 6, Smith 5, Smiley 4, Wilson 4, Hunt 3, Greene 2
