Two weeks ago when Marlboro and Scotland squared off, the Bulldogs let their emotions get the better of them late in the game.

Monday night was a much different story.

Marlboro outscored the Scots, 14-4, in the fourth quarter, exacting a measure of payback against the Scots, 41-32.

“We weren’t taking care of the ball and we weren’t getting good shots,” Scotland coach Mike Ritchie said. “What got us in trouble though, which was my fault, was staying in zone for too long."



Both teams took awhile to get going. Both teams went nearly two minutes in the first without scoring a single point.

The teams traded the lead in the first quarter,but the Scots took a one-point lead (11-10) at the end of the first on a basket from Dominique Clark.

The two teams combined to score just 12 points in the second, but the Scots took a five-point lead (19-14) into the half while using a zone defense.

“Never been a fan of zone defense, but at times it can benefit us,” said Ritchie on why he stayed with the zone for as long as he did. “Unfortunately, it slowed the game down and it made our guys play at a slower pace.”

The two teams saw the lead change hands on six different occasions in the third but, Scotland (3-5) still clinged to a one-point lead (28-27) heading into the final quarter.

Marlboro re-took the lead, 30-27, at the beginning of the fourth on a three from Malik Ford, who led the Bulldogs with 17 points.

Marlboro opened up a six-point lead (34-28) on a field goal from Tian Underwood. Rasheem Bostic put the game out of reach with three midway through the fourth.

The Bulldogs went into a stall offense over the last 3:30 of the game, using almost 45-second possessions to run out the clock and an end to the Scots’ hopes of a season sweep.

Clark paced Scotland with eight points while Mo Covington chipped in seven.

The Scots will travel to former M-SEC foe, Terry Sanford, Wednesday night.

Junior varsity

The Scotland junior varsity boys improved to 5-2 on the year with a 41-27 win over Marlboro County.

Jauan Petty led the Scots with14 points. Caison Murphy and Donte Nicholson chipped in eight and seven, respectively.