Dallas County knocked off Holtville 75-62 on Tuesday, but the Hornets did not play up to Coach Willie Moore’s expectations.

“I think we played terrible,” said Moore. “We had two bad days of practice because our kids were not mentally focused on the game at hand tonight.”

Fresh off a win over Selma, the Hornets didn’t display the intensity they had only a few nights earlier and despite runs that often put games away, the Bulldogs kept fighting back.

The Hornets and Bulldogs exchanged baskets in the early going before Dallas County took control with a 9-1 run sparked by an Andrew Mahan layup to take a 23-15 lead.

But a pair of 3-pointers by August Zeigler and Jake Felder quickly cut the Bulldogs’ deficit to 23-21.

The Hornets had two 6-0 runs in the second quarter but couldn’t take firm control as the Bulldogs cut the lead to 29-25 following the first run and 35-31 after the second. But the Hornets still managed to take a 46-37 lead into the locker room.

Mahan scored the Hornets’ first six points of the third quarter as Dallas County extended its lead to 52-39 and a Henry Baker layup made it a 54-40 game.

The Hornets finally seized control — or so it seemed — with a 14-2 run started by two Mahan free throws to extend the lead to 68-48.

But the Bulldogs cut the lead in half with a 12-2 run to capped by two Kevion Jackson free throws.

Suddenly, even with a 70-60 lead and only 3:12 remaining, Hornet fans grew restless.

But the Bulldog’s comeback wasn’t meant to be as the Hornets outscored them 5-1 the rest of the way.

Moore and the Hornets will take the win, but with Keith looming on Friday, Moore wants his players to regain their focus.

“Our kids tend to play harder against the teams within the county, but we don’t have the same consistent effort against teams from outside the county,” said Moore. “(Tonight’s effort was) not good enough to beat any of the teams we are going to have to play in this area or in this county.”