Nashville Pulls Through Against Harrisburg

By Travis Volz

With postseason play looming, the Nashville Hornets were looking to test themselves against tough competition at Saturday’s Rich Herrin Shootout in Benton, and they passed that test with flying colors by beating a tough Harrisburg squad 67-52.

“This was a great game for us in preparation for the postseason,” Nashville coach Brad Weathers said. “Harrisburg is a quality team that is playing well, so we knew that win or lose, it would be a good game for us.”

Nashville big men Hunter Cooper and Royce Newman were major factors in the game, combining to score 37 points against a small but physical pack of Bulldogs.

“Royce played well, and Coop had a really good game down there,” said Weathers. “We needed our big bodies to haul in some defensive rebounds.”

After dominating play in the first quarter, the Hornets went cold and allowed Harrisburg to reel off 19 unanswered points to turn a 12-point deficit into a lead.

“Early on we caused them some problems with our trap, and we got some turnovers and converted on them,” Weathers said. “They solved that a little bit in the second quarter, and when we overplayed it, they made us pay.”

Most of the damage was done beyond the arc, as the Bulldogs knocked down five triples during their 19-point run. Newman finally broke put an end to the Hornets’ scoring drought with a bucket and two free throws, and Daniel Thorson connected on two shots from the charity stripe late in the first half to cut Harrisburg’s lead to four points at the intermission.

For More, Read The February 11, Edition Of The Nashville News

Hunter Cooper and Royce Newman battle for a rebound during the Hornets’ win over Harrisburg at the Rich Herrin Shootout in Benton Saturday.