Indians roll past Lancaster, 111-74
By LARRY HILLIARD Ledger Sports Editor larry@gaffneyledger.com

JAZZ PALMER

After two subpar games, it wasn't surprising the Gaffney Indians didn't experience a third on Friday.

Rodney Love controlled the opening tipoff with a quick pass that Ken Littlejohn ran under for an easy layup to begin Gaffney's 111-74 victory over Lancaster Friday night.

Gaffney jumped out to a 23-10 lead on a couple of baskets by Kobe Hollis and a fast break slam dunk by Love. Josh Corry buried a long distance three pointer at the buzzer to give Gaffney a 34-12 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Lancaster ran up and down the court with Gaffney in a lightning quick game. Bodies tumbled to the floor frequently and the Indians repeatedly threw long passes downcourt for easy fastbreak opportunities for a 60-33 halftime lead.

"We got off to a good start. Yesterday we changed our pregame warm-ups because we didn't go hard enough in warmups the past couple games. It was taking our players three to four minutes to get warmed up in the game," Gaffney coach Mark Huff said. "We played hard and got after it from the start tonight. I am very pleased to get the win."

Kobe Hollis led Gaffney with 22 points. Point guard Emison Hughes, who was called up from the junior varsity, scored 15 points while Love and Jazz Palmer each scored 14 points. Corry added 11 points.

"I'm very proud of Emison. I thought he did a great job in his first varsity game. He did a good job of playing the point and keeping his head up to pass the ball ahead for some easy transition baskets," Huff said. "We moved Robert Butler back to the two guard where he played some last year. I think Robert felt more comfortable there."

Gaffney led 94-49 at the end of the third quarter.

With the large lead, the Indians' play turned sloppy as they struggled to maintain their intensity in the fourth quarter against Lancaster. Gaffney turned the ball over seven times in a two-minute stretch early in the fourth quarter.

Gaffney waited until midway through the fourth quarter to go over 100 points. The Indians narrowly missed setting a new scoring record under Huff, whose Sidney Rice-led team scored 113 points in 2003.

"It's a great advantage to play at home. Our players played with great intensity for the most part," Huff said. "We coasted a little bit in the fourth quarter. We did a better job of taking care of the basketball. This was an important game for tiebreakers because it gives us a 5-0 nonregion record. Every game counts."

Gaffney (11-4, 3-2) travels to Hillcrest on Tuesday.