It was an up and down week for the Panthers of Jackson County, as Jackson County lost first to Johnson on Tuesday, then in a close game to Banks County on Saturday.
Up next is a home stand against Morgan County for region play on Friday. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:30 p.m.
The Panthers started off the week last Tuesday with an 80-40 loss to Johnson.
It was not a good game for Jackson County, as they were plagued by turnovers and poor shooting, going 12 for 37 from two point range, and five of 14 from three point range.
Alex Crawford led in scoring against Johnson with nine points, while Nick Oney scored seven.
Jackson County was hoping to rebound Saturday against the Leopards of Banks County in Homer. They came close, staying within shouting distance throughout the game. The Panthers led Banks County 9-7 at the end of the first quarter, but lost the lead in the second quarter, trailing 21-18 going into the half.
The Leopards began to pull out a lead in the third quarter, moving out 38-27. But the Panthers began to close the gap in the fourth, moving to within three points with 16 seconds left on the clock. But the Panthers turned over the ball with seven seconds left, allowing Banks County to score again, and to record a 55-50 win.
Joseph Smith led the Panthers in scoring, recording 17 points against the Leopards. Jonathan Baxter scored 12 points, and picked up nine rebounds, while Juice Harrison recorded eight points and eight rebounds.
“We are still struggling with turnovers,” said coach Britt Beaver. “We are improving in some areas, but we are still young and making young mistakes. It hurts now to make these mistakes, but I would rather make them now than in February when it really counts.”
The Panthers were scheduled to travel to Elbert County Tuesday to face the Blue Devils. Results of that game were unavailable at press time.
