Boys' basketball: Johnson pulls away from JCCHS in second half

The Panthers fell to 0-2 with a 67-33 loss Monday to Johnson in the first round of the Knight’s tip-off tournament.

Jackson County trailed just 24-15 at the break, but Johnson pulled away in the third quarter and Panther coach Britt Beaver subbed in his freshmen and sophomores in the fourth quarter.

“We played better but we’re still struggling to score,” Beaver said. “(We’re) taking good shots, (but) not hitting any.”

Logan Smith led the Panthers with 12 points. Jarvis Shaw added six.

Jackson County fell to Union County 67-44 two nights earlier to start the season. Union County hit four three-pointers early to put Jackson County in a hole, and Beaver’s team never recovered.

“They just shot the lights out and jumped on us early,” said Beaver, whose team started three players who didn’t play any varsity minutes last year.

Shaw and Smith both scored 10 points to lead Jackson County offensively.

Union County’s experience showed, Beaver said.

“Union County just played really well,” he said. “They returned all five starters from last year and man it showed because they were really comfortable out there, very experienced.”

Beaver hopes this can serve as a learning experience for his younger guys.

“I think we’re really going to learn a lot from that and really pick that tape apart and teach and do a better job with some things next time,” he said.