Pike County head coach Doug Holland knew his team had a tough task in front of them when the Bulldogs saw their names matched up with Luverne in the second round of the Goshen Holiday Tournament on Friday.

Donta Hall, the Tigers’ dominant big man and University of Alabama signee, has had his way with opposing teams in the paint up to this point in the season.

And Friday night, Hall proved too much for Pike County to handle down the stretch, scoring 29 points — 16 in the fourth quarter — and recording a triple-double as the Tigers downed the Bulldogs 61-51.

“He’s (Hall) one of the best players in the state,” Holland said. “We were trying to man him up and put him in zone and try to throw some different looks at him, but he’s pretty good.”

Hall and Luverne got off to a fast start in what proved to be a chippy game.

Luverne and Pike County traded baskets and shoves throughout the first quarter, and the Bulldogs took advantage of several early Tiger fouls, going 5-for-9 from the free throw line in the first.

Early in the second, Luverne began to impose their will on Pike County, racing out to a 21-10 lead.

But the Bulldogs responded, going on a 14-5 run.

Kamari Jackson lead Pike County, scoring seven points in the second quarter to bring the Bulldogs to within two.

But Luverne, not to be outdone, went on a run of their own to end the half, as the Tigers went into the locker room up 32-24.

Going into the second half, Jackson did his best to keep the Bulldogs in the game, tallying nine points in the third quarter to trim the Luverne lead to 42-40.

But after three quarters of keeping Hall at bay, the senior center took over the fourth quarter, sending shot after shot from the Bulldogs out of bounds and cleaning up the glass, with two put-back dunks to start the fourth quarter.

Hall finished the night with 21 rebounds and 13 blocks.

“We are good, we just have to keep working,” Holland said. “It’s only our fourth game of the year. It’s no big deal.”

Jackson finished with a team-high 23 points for the Bulldogs.