Pierce County dropped two games in the seasonopening week of the 202526 basketball season with a home loss and another on the road.
Bacon County (2-1) spoiled the head coaching debut of the Bears’ Shannon Batten rallying for a 67-50 road victory Tuesday, November 18 in the old Bears Den.
“I’m super excited for the opportunity given in leading this team,” said Batten. “We will grow as a team throughout the season. We’ve made huge progress from summer into last night. There is just no magic wand to fix all the mistakes at one time.
“I am very pleased with the turnout from supporters. The energy in the gym was great and it was a Tuesday night. The players talked about how the fans support was awesome.”
The Bears suffered a heartbreaking 33-32 loss in Folkston to Charlton County (1-2) Thursday, November 20.
“This one really stings,” Batten said. “We played so well at both ends of the floor to carry the lead the entire game and lose in the final seconds is gut wrenching to say the least.”
Pierce County has two weeks between games taking the this week off with the Thanksgiving break. The Tuesday, December 2 tilt with Clinch County in Homerville has been rescheduled to Monday, January 26.
The Bears next take the floor Thursday, December 4 at Jeff Davis.
Bacon County ........67 Bears.....................50 BEARVILLE — The Red Raiders doubled up PCHS over the final 16 minutes using a 40-20 scoring advantage in overcoming a 30-27 halftime deficit.
“I thought we played well for our first game,” said Batten. “Bacon County had an advantage having played two games and it showed in the 2nd half. They (Red Raiders) outhustled us and dominated the boards with their size and strength in the second half.
“I’m super proud of the effort. They competed with consistency on both ends of the floor and we didn’t stop playing. We got into major foul trouble that led to some runs by Bacon County when we had some freshmen on the floor.”
PCHS raced out to a 1913 lead in the opening eight minutes with Shavez Warren scoring eight of his team-high 18 points. The Red Raiders sliced three points off the deficit by intermission, outscoring Pierce County 14-11 to trail 30-27.
Bacon County caught fire in the third period, outpointing the Bears 2414 to take a 51-44 advantage into the final period. The Red Raiders closed out the final eight minutes, outscoring PCHS 16-6.
Chezz Armstrong joined Warren in double figures finishing with 10 points. Jikeyse McGauley netted six points.
Tymere Monroe contributed four points. Maverick Pitts and Nasir Sealy each bagged three points. Dereck Clark netted two points.
Bacon County had three double-digit scorers led by the game-high 24 points of Santiago Bizzell. K.J. Barnes and Theron Moore added 15 points and 12 points.
Brayden O’Neal finished with nine points. Jamon Ellis chipped in four points while A’Mare Ryals and Kaiden Barnes finished with two points and one point respectively.
Charlton Co. ..........33 Bears .....................32 FOLKSTON — Jordan Mangram’s lone basket of the game in the final seconds lifted Charlton County to its first victory of the season.
The Bears carried a 2923 lead into the final eight minutes. PCHS managed a three-point basket by Sealy (five points) while the Indians were able to convert three baskets and hit 4-of-6 free throws.
“I told the guys after the game to harness the feeling they currently had and use it to fuel your determination and desire to achieve our goals for the season,” said Batten. “We can’t dwell on the past. We have to look to the next game and learn from this. I was super proud of the effort, dedication, commitment and willingness to compete. When we figure out how to win we will win.”
For the second straight game PCHS would take a lead into halftime. The Bears claimed an 11-8 first quarter lead by McGauley (team-high 16 points) and Armstrong (seven) combining for all the points.
Pierce County padded the margin by two points in the second period outscoring the Indians 8-6 for a 19-14 advantage at the break.
The Bears added a point to their margin in the third stanza outscoring Charlton County 10-9 for a 29-23 lead.
Monroe and Warren each scored a basket to reach the scoring column for PCHS.
Charlton County was paced by the 17-point effort of Jaylan Washington, who went 8-of-13 from the charity stripe. The Indians finished 11-of-17 as a team while PCHS was 1-of-4.
