RAEFORD- Going on the road, into a hostile environment is enough to make anyone want to turn back.

For Scotland though, they thrive under the circumstances.

Dominique Clark put in the game-winning basket with 1.5 seconds to play as Scotland escaped Hoke County with a 59-57 thriller Friday night.

“It was almost identical to winning basket he had against Richmond,” said Scotland coach Mike Ritchie referring back to the Scots two-point win over the Raiders on Jan.26. “We weren’t ready to play at the start but the boys fought back. You got to give credit to Hoke County, they played extremely hard.”

The Scots, who trailed by 15 points at halftime, got 20 points and eight rebounds from Clark. Mo Covington complimented him with nine points and six assists.

Lamont Browne, Brad McMillan and Lamar McIntyre contributed eight points apiece while Tony McRae finished with seven.

“We’re very fortunate to be in the situation that we are right now,” said Ritchie about their upcoming game vs. sixth-ranked Pinecrest Monday night with first-place at stake. “The kids have worked extremely hard and all you want is a chance at that conference championship.”

D.J. Hinson paced the Bucks with 19 points.

Earlier in the evening, the Scotland girl’s basketball team got a double-double from Ariel Ratcliff in a 41-38 grinder against Hoke.

“We really had to grind it out tonight and Hoke played very tough against us,” Lady Scots coach David Johnson said. “But the girls were able to get defensive stops when we needed them and that made a difference.”

Ratcliff was lone Scotland player in double figures with 12 points and 11 steals.

Bridgette Dockery scored eight points while Tierra Pate contributed six before sitting out the second half after re-aggravating her shoulder.