A record is sometimes deceiving.

The South Dearborn Knights entered the first round sectional play with only two wins.

But they were not a team to be taken lightly.

Coach Aaron Garrett and the Batesville Bulldogs expected a battle and they got one on Tuesday night.

The Bulldogs did what they needed in the sectional opener and left with a hard-fought 47-42 victory.

“The most important thing in the tournament is to survive and the boys found a way to survive through great effort,” Garrett commented. “The shots weren’t falling, but they continued to play hard, aggressive defense and rebound.”

The Bulldogs were just 6-of-26 from two point range, but made up for it some from three-point range. Led by three treys from Wes Goldsmith, the Bulldogs were 8-of-17 from outside the arc.

Batesville did out-rebound the Knights 27-20 with some of the biggest coming late in the game.

A Connor Kelley tip in at the 1:51 mark in the fourth quarter may have been the biggest. The basket gave the Bulldogs a 42-40 lead and they did not trail again.

Kelley finished with a team-high eight rebounds followed by Cody Cole with six.

The Bulldogs led by as many as 11 points in the first quarter, but a 3-pointer by South’s Matthew McLaughlin as time ran out seemed to shift the momentum.

The Knights went on to outscore Batesville 13-3 and take a two point lead into halftime.

The Bulldogs regrouped at halftime and regained the lead in the third quarter.

Goldsmith scored on an assist by Cole and was fouled in the process. The BHS junior competed the three-point play and put the Bulldogs on top 29-27 with just under a minute to play in the quarter.

Tom Jeffers capped the third quarter with a pair of free throws to make it 31-27.

Each team countered a big basket with one of their own in the fourth quarter.

Three-pointers by Goldsmith and Jeffers gave the Bulldogs a boost, but the Knights answered.

McLaughlin capped an 8-0 run to give the Knights a 40-39 lead with just over three minutes to play in the game.

After Kelley’s tip in at the 1:51 mark, Cole stepped up with a field goal and three free throws to help preserve the victory. The BHS sophomore hit 2-of-2 at the :07 mark to put the Bulldogs in front by five points.

“Wes and Cody really picked us up and made some big shots in a big game,” Garrett commented.

Goldsmith finished with a team-high 17 points followed by Cole with 13.

The Knights were led in scoring by Joel Scudder with 17 and McLaughlin with 11.

Batesville improved to 17-4 on the season and will next be in action Friday night at the Greensburg Sectional against the Franklin County Wildcats.