Trojans start hot, finish cold in loss to Cavaliers

In several of the contests prior to Thursday night's matchup with Crockett County, the Trojans had been the hunters, oftentimes falling behind early only to surge back from behind and make things interesting down the stretch.

Against the Cavaliers the role was reversed. Dyersburg jumped out to an early double-digit advantage only to see the Cavaliers storm back behind a stellar performance from Marshun Hill, ultimately earning a lopsided, 59-38 win over the Trojans in a district contest certainly closer than the final score indicated.

"We ran into a hot team tonight and give Crockett County credit because they were ready to play," said Dyersburg head coach Blaine Mahaffey. "It wasn't for lack of effort because our guys played hard, but it seemed like we were in quicksand and the harder we tried the further we sank."

Dyersburg (9-12, 5-8) looked poised to make quick work of the Cavaliers in the early going, jumping out to a 9-2 lead at the end of the first after closing out the period on a 6-0 run.

The Trojan defense kept Hill scoreless in the opening period, but the second quarter was another story.

After racing out to a 19-4 advantage with six minutes left in the period, Hill put the Cavaliers on his back and began chipping away at the deficit by getting good looks at the basket after slashing through the Dyersburg defense.

Though Hill finished with a game-high 25 points, 13 of those came in the second quarter when Crockett County desperately needed something positive to happen.

Though the Cavaliers outscored the Trojans 15-12 in the period, Dyersburg was able to head to the locker room at the half with a four-point lead, 21-17.

"I really felt ok at the half, I really did," added Mahaffey. "We allowed the Hill kid to come in and take it to us for four or five minutes there in the second quarter, but we still had the lead and I thought we would come out and be all right."

Hill picked up where he left off in the first half, scoring five of the first eight points to give the Cavaliers their first lead of the ballgame, 25-24. Though the two squads battled throughout the third quarter of the low-scoring contest, Crockett County held a 34-30 lead at the end of the period.

The fourth quarter was one the Trojans will surely like to forget as soon as possible. The Cavaliers turned up the heat offensively, while the Trojans struggled to find the basket.

The Cavaliers erupted in the final period, outscoring Dyersburg 25-8 to earn the 59-38 district win.

"This was just one of those nights that nothing really went right for us. What we have to do now is go back to work and get better. Three of our last four games are in the district, so they will have a lot to do with our district seeding," he added. "We have a chance to control where we end up in the tournament, and these guys are going to continue to work hard. So, while I didn't want to lose this game, I'm not worried about our team and the direction we're headed."

Dyersburg will travel to Covington on Tuesday.