WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT HOLLY POND? PART 1

HOLLY POND —

Thomas Hays knew he wasn't having his best game Friday night.

But despite what he was feeling, the Holly Pond senior came through with four crucial points down the stretch to help the Broncos pull out a 53-52 win over Winfield in the Class 3A Northwest boys sub-regional game.

"I was really hoping we could get him going early in the ball game, but Winfield did a good job of hanging on the back side so we didn't get it to him as often," Holly Pond coach Mitch Morris said. "Then he picked up three fouls and hurt his ankle and had to sit a lot, but he came in during the fourth quarter, gutted it out and came through with some big free throws and big rebounds down the stretch for us."

Clinging to a 48-47 lead with just over a minute left to play in the game, Hays sank both shots from the charity stripe to give the Broncos a three point cushion, but it didn't last long as Winfield's Jordan Junkin drove the lane for a layup to pull the Pirates back within one.

Holly Pond's Bryant Sparks drew a foul on the ensuing possession and made one of two shots from the free-throw line to make it a two point game with 10 seconds remaining. Hays drew a foul himself just seconds later and drained the winning shots to seal the deal for the Broncos.

"Coach pulled me over to the side and told me to forget everything that had happened earlier in the game and to get my mindset right and to do what I needed to do," Hays said. "He had faith in me and I knocked them down."

After a back-and-forth first quarter, Sparks had a nothing-but-net trey at the buzzer to give Holly Pond a 14-11 advantage at the end of one. The second quarter offered much of the same as neither team held more than a three point lead, but Winfield made the final shot just before the half to give them a leading heading into the break.

Chase Garrison's shot from behind the arc sparked the Pirates to open the third. A 5-0 run followed to put Holly Pond's point deficit to eight. However, the Broncos erased that margin, answering with a 9-0 run of their own that was sparked by a Colby Adams’ three.

"It was a very pressured game from start to finish," Morris said. "We had some opportunities to go ahead or get down but we kept fighting and found a way despite the turnovers and missed free throws we had. It seemed like we were doing everything to lose, but the boys did what we needed to to win and I'm tickled to death we came out on top."

Sparks led the team in scoring with 14 points. Adams followed with 10. Hays, along with Gunter Morris, finished the night with eight points apiece.

Chase Garrison scored 18 to lead Winfield.

The win gives Holly Pond their second straight berth in the Northwest Regional Tournament being held at Wallace State beginning Tuesday. The Broncos will face Elkmont Thursday at 1:30 p.m. in one of two 3A boys games.

"It feels good to be going back," Hays said. "It's a good accomplishment. It’s been one of our goals all season long. Last year we fell short by a point in the first game, so we're hoping to be able to win our first one instead of losing."