13-1 but 'no life, no energy'

By Rex Kirts

Maybe, J.R. Holmes agreed, South's problem is too much confidence.
Instead of playing with a sense of urgency and visible intensity, the Panthers just completed a weekend doubleheader with a lacklustre victory at Martinsville and a struggling win against Franklin Central at South.
They are 13-1, so there's no denying their ability. But it often seems they show up with an attitude like, "We know we're going to win."
Dee Davis called it "lackadaisical" after Saturday's 63-56 battle with Franklin Central.
For sure the Panthers have a relaxed and completely confident look, and confidence is a good thing. But Holmes is concerned about whatever it is that's causing his team to perform, at times, a little below par.
"I'm disappointed," he said. "We have no life. We can't seem to stand prosperity."
Several times the Panthers took control of the FC game, only to let the visitors come storming back. This has happened at other times this season.
IN A SEE-SAW first half, the Panthers trailed 29-26 at halftime. They trailed 7-0 to start the game and then rang up 12 straight points. Later on they let FC go on a 15-2 run but had a 15-4 run themselves in the second half.
"I had nothing to say to them at halftime," Holmes said."If they have no enthusiasm, no energy . . . I can't make them play."
"We just didn't come out with energy," said Davis, who fouled out late. "I finally made a jump shot." Franklin Central did a good job of taking away Davis' driving, but he hit two big 3s in the second half.
Dominance of the boards and good free throw shooting (19-24) enabled South to win the game. It was a struggle because FC is a good team with great speed and great coaching.
And they won because they can turn it on offensively at key times. There isn't a whole lot wrong with their offense.
It's defense, burdened by lack of overall speed, that causes trouble. The offense is frequently put in a position to win the game, and that's difficult on nights when the shooting is cool.
"WE COULDN'T stop them," Holmes said of FC. "We had no help on the help side. It looks like they've never been coached."
Dribble penetration, especially by swift point guard Jason Riley (17 points), hurt South all night, and it's something the Panthers are likely to see Friday at Pike by star guard Marquis Teague. There were defensive woes the night before at Martinsville, too.
"We have no energy," the Panther coach reiterated. "I don't have the answer."
He concluded, "But, it's a highlight of your career to beat a team coached by Mark James."
Despite the problems, there were many good things. One of them was a win in Conference Indiana to keep the Panthers perfect in the league, and it came before a team that was also unbeaten in the conference. Now there are just two unbeatens (4-0) left, South and Pike.
The win was the 28th straight in the conference and the 41st straight at home. The Panthers host Columbus East on Tuesday in a makeup game before going to Pike on Friday.
Among the other good things to happen against FC was the play of Ben Stowell. He was in the doghouse because of his defense Friday night, but he did a solid job on Kyle James on Saturday, holding him to five points.
"I TRIED TO STEP UP my intensity on defense," Stowell said. "I didn't want to give him any open looks and wanted to keep him from going to his right."
Stowell delivered on offense, too, scoring 14 points. He was 4-for-4 on 3-point shots, one of them a biggie with 5:05 left to put South ahead by five, 54-49.
All five starters scored in double figures and accounted for all South's points. Spencer Turner also had 14 points, Joey Forney 13 and Davis and Desmond Marks 11.
Forney and Marks also had eight rebounds and Turner six.
"I thought Joey Forney played good all night," Holmes said. "Stowell played pretty well, and Des. The second half we got the ball inside (to Marks).
Turner's 3-point shooting was off (1-5), but he was 7-7 at the free throw line.
"They put James on me," Turner said. "He's a really good ball player. I've played against him since the second or third grade, and he knows what I can do. He guarded me hard.
"I think their kids got a little tired at the end. And we just hit some shots."