After dropping their first tilt last week against Velma Jackson, YCHS head coach Torrey Dale knew his Panthers had their work cut out for them when they visited the Falcons this past Friday night. What looked like a game that would end in defeat, turned out to be an unexpected victory as the Panthers used a 16-6 fourth quarter surge to propel themselves to a two-point, 48-46, conference win.
“That was a big win for us,” said YCHS head coach Torrey Dale, whose Panthers were coming off a 67-56 loss earlier in the week to the Falcons. “We haven’t beaten Velma in over 10 years and to beat them in Velma. Plus, I only played six guys due to injuries and team discipline. This should give us confidence heading into the district tournament.”
Velma either outscored or tied Yazoo County in every quarter except the pivotal fourth quarter where the Panthers’ 10-point advantage provided the final outcome. The Falcons led 12-11 after one quarter of play and after both teams scored 15 points in the second period, Velma led by one, 27-26, at intermission.
The Falcons started to creep away a little in the third quarter with a 13-6 scoring advantage, before the Panthers stepped on the gas to pull out the win. Kejuan Frierson led the Panthers with 19 points followed in double figures by Lakevion Dixon with 13. Manari Paige and Erkevion Scott each scored seven and Matthew Swan chipped in with two.
PANTHERS 56, FALCONS 67
Three Panthers reached double figures against the Falcons, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the Falcon duo of Jordan Harvey and RD Wilson. Harvey scored a game-high 25 points followed by Wilson with 21 to secure the win for the Falcons. Dixon and Franco Whisenton led the Panthers with 15 points apiece, followed by Frierson with 12. Other scorers were Scott with five, Paige with four, Kaleb Washington with three, and Swan and Austin Haymer with two apiece.
The Panthers have three games remaining before the district tournament and are hoping to close out the regular season on a 5-game winning streak. They hosted Magee on Tuesday, before hitting the road for their final two games at Magee on Friday and at McLaurin Saturday at 10 a.m.
