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AMERICUS – After one half of play between the Sumter County Panthers (SCHS) and the Dodge County Indians (DC), the score was tied at 22-22. However, the Panthers would go on a 9-0 run in the third quarter and would control the game from then on out on their way to a 66-54 Region 1-AA victory over DC Tuesday night at the Panther Pit.

The was a huge win for the Panthers, being that DC came into the contest with an overall record of 19-2 and a Region 1-AA record of 9-1.

“I have to give it to my guys. They played hard. They competed”, SCHS Head Coach Johnny Genwright said. “They played well on defense and the rebounding was also good tonight. In the second half, we made free throws. As long as we make free throws, we give ourselves a chance to win the game. We also made some tough shots. My guys didn’t quit. They kept fighting and we pulled out a win.”

Mike Terry led the Panthers in scoring with 17 points and Anthony Tyson poured in 15. Javaris Scott almost cracked the double-digit scoring column, as he had nine points on the night.

The first quarter was a back-and-forth affair between both teams, with the score tied at 12-12 by the quarter’s end.

Over the first two minutes of the second quarter, both teams traded baskets, but with a little more than four minutes left before halftime, Corey Wright drained a three-pointer to give the Panthers a 19-16 lead. Over the remaining minutes of the first half, the Indians would go on a 6-3 run and at halftime, the score was tied at 22-22.

Early in the third quarter, the Panthers scored nine unanswered points to take a 31-22 lead before DC called a timeout with 4:24 left in the third quarter. Out of the timeout, the Panthers continued to hold the Indians scoreless, while they continued to build their lead. They increased their lead to 35-22 on two free throws by Braylon Terry. Shortly thereafter, the Indians finally scored their first two points of the second half when Jaboree Graham scored, was fouled and made the foul shot to complete a three-point play. For the remainder of the third quarter, the Panthers continued to play strong on the defensive end and would go into the fourth quarter with a 41-28 lead.

Over the first few minutes of the fourth quarter, both teams traded baskets before timeout was called with 6:40 to go. During this period of the game, the Indians put on a full-court press, but the Panthers were able to break it. However, as the quarter continued, the Indians got to within seven at 50-43 when Jaedon McClendon hit a jump shot. Fortunately for the Panthers, they were able to whether that storm and would go on a 6-0 run to take a 56-43 lead.

The Indians would respond by going on a 5-0 run of their own to cut the Panthers’ lead to eight, but the Panthers were able to whether that storm as well and would go on to win by the score of 66-54.

The win gives the Panthers an overall record of 8-15 and they are tied for third place with Worth County in the Region 1-AA standings at 6-4.

The Panthers will travel to Worth County on Thursday to take on the Rams for sole possession of third place in the region. Tip off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.