Trailing 15-7 with 1:57 left in the first period, Andalusia made some necessary adjustments to go on a 44-10 run through the end of the third period en route to a 61-31 defeat over Pleasant Home on Thursday night for its home opener.

AHS quickly started chipping away at its deficit by going on a 5-0 run to end the first period still trailing 15-12.

After the brief intermission between periods, the Bulldogs got in their rhythm and went back to their trusty inside game to outscore the Eagles 19-6 in the second to take a 31-21 halftime lead.

Andalusia led 51-25 after the third period.

The game plan for the Bulldogs was simply to take PHS guards Troy Fantroy and Chase Gunter out of the mix, AHS coach Richard Robertson said.

“We wanted to hold them under their production, and we felt like we did that,” Robertson, who started his 38th season as the boys coach earlier this week. “This is a good teaching point for our players because now they’ll see that they (Fantroy and Gunter) were the leading scorers Tuesday night (against Zion Chapel), and tonight we kind of shut them down. That opened up things for the rest of us.”

That it did especially in the second period when things started cooking for AHS. Devante Jackson found Montel Lee down load to cut the lead to 15-14 early on.

Pleasant Home’s Jon Cole Chesser found Tanner Veasey on the inside to give the Eagles a 17-14 lead a short time later.

Jackson answered on the other end with a 3-pointer with 6:49 left in the first half. Jackson then got another steal and was found in the pant, where he made his two free throws to give the Bulldogs a lead they’d never give up.

Lee drove the basket for a 22-17 advantage, and Phillip James — who finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds to lead AHS — added another two points to give AHS a 24-17 lead.

Trevor Parker got a jumper, James added a free throw for a 30-21 advantage.

PHS coach Bradley Stephens said the youth got to the team a bit.

“We didn’t start any seniors,” Stephens said. “They made the adjustments and we didn’t adjust real well to them.”

Jackson got a steal and sliced a nice pass to James in the paint for an easy bucket as AHS lead 41-23 in the third period with 4:08 to go.

Jackson, who punched in 17 points, got a put back a short time later and AHS led by 20 at 43-23 to put the game out of sight.

Chesser led PHS with 10 points. Veasey chipped in eight.

Lee added 10 points in the effort for the Bulldogs, who host Elba on Tuesday.

The Eagles play in a tournament at Excel, starting on Monday.

In B-team action, the Bulldogs won 34-13.

Ke’Shun Townsend led AHS with 10 points. Jamal Hourel chipped in seven.

Pleasant Home’s Reid Adams led the Eagles with five points.

Andalusia girls 34, Pleasant Home girls 33 in OT

Andalusia girls coach Brad Garner’s defense stopped Pleasant Home in its tracks late in regulation and held on during overtime for a 34-33 win last night in extra time.

“We’re trying to build the foundations of it on aggressive in your face man defense,” Garner said. “I told them in there that’s definintely what won it for you.”

The Lady Bulldogs outscored PHS 12-6 in the fourth period and had chances to go ahead, but ended up with a 29-29 tie going into extra minutes, where the game went back.

Andalusia made the eventual game-winning shot after Laticia Crittenden fed a steal to Alexis Lawrence after a missed free throw. Lawrence drove the lane and got an and-1.

“It kind of went about like I thought,” PHS coach Jerry Davis said. “Coach Garner does a great job of playing man to man defense. That’s what he’s known for.”