In his final game as a Bowling Green Purple, Terry Taylor decided to make the most of his athleticism as he scored 21 points while grabbing a handful of blocks and dunks in the Purples’ 93-74 win over Russellville.
“It’s starting to sink in that I won’t be playing here anymore,” Taylor said. “I’ve had a lot of great memories here, and I’m going to miss it.”
Taylor got the ball rolling for Bowling Green (27-2) in the first quarter by scoring 11 of his 21 points while making three 3-point baskets.
However, despite Taylor’s efforts, it would prove to be eighth-grader Zion Harmon’s night from beyond the arch as he drilled off 25 points to lead all scorers, 18 of them coming off of his six 3-point baskets. 
“When you combine Zion, myself, and all of our other teammates that can shoot really well from that range, it just puts a lot of pressure on the defense to stop us,” said Taylor. “It makes us a really tough team to stop.”
Bowling Green showed that it could also play a little defense along with their impressive shooting, holding a speedy Russellville offense to only 26 points in the first quarter as the teams went into the locker room at the half with the Purples holding a 45-26 lead.
The Panthers (18-10) would not go away easily, however.
Playing desperate in the third quarter, Russellville went on a 16-3 run that prolonged well into the fourth period, cutting Bowling Green’s lead to 68-55.
Despite firing off 23 and 26 points in the third and fourth quarters, respectively, the Panthers could not find a way to stop the Purples’ offense, who answered with 22-point third and 26-point fourth quarters.
To cap off the Senior Night festivities, Taylor threw down a massive dunk as Bowling Green led 90-69 with 1:03 left in the game before head coach DG Sherrill benched his starters for the night.
Sherrill had much praise after the game for his seniors, who hold a 118-18 record as a squad.
“They’re a solid group of young men,” Sherrill said. “It’s tough to think that they played their last game here tonight. We’ve had a lot of memories here.
“They’ll go out and conquer the world when they are done here, but we get them for just a little while longer. In a one-and-done tournament, we hope that we can change gears and play our best basketball at the right time.”
Harmon’s 25 points led the Purples while Taylor’s 21 points followed.
Russellville was led by Pedro Bradshaw, who had 24 points including 10 in the third quarter. Jaylyn McMurry added 12 for the Panthers.
Bowling Green will get a week off before facing either South Warren or Warren East in the 14th District Tournament at Warren Central High School.
