Over the holiday break, Starr’s Mill boys’ varsity basketball participated in two tournaments, finishing in fifth place at the SMI Carroll County Holiday Classic and third in the Hilton Sandestin Basketball Blowout. However, they have returned home to continue region play against more familiar opponents. The Panthers currently sit in a four-way tie for second in the region, as McIntosh, Whitewater, Riverdale, and Starr’s Mill hold a 2-2 region record. Of those teams, however, the Panthers have the best overall record at 9-5.

“[The tournaments] get you ready for the region tournament,” head coach Brandon Hutchins said. “It gives us the chance to build chemistry and be with each other.”

This past Tuesday, the Panthers returned to region play and received a harsh wake-up call as they suffered an 18-point loss to the Fayette County Tigers. Capturing their fifth region win in five tries, the Tigers showed the Panthers they have a long way to go if they want to win the region. Senior point guard Austin Nesmith scored 29 points to go along with his 13 assists and help the Tigers protect their home floor. Senior guard Kahmonnie Williams added 19 more points.

For the Panthers, junior point guard Zach Pina faced a double-team the entire game and only scored seven points on 2-for-8 shooting. However, sophomore Nate Allison dropped in 22 points and eight rebounds. The Panthers shot 31 percent from beyond the arc, with junior Drew Hudson hitting three of his five 3-point attempts.

“What we lacked from the second quarter on was energy,” Pina said. “That’s on us. We have to come out and do a better job on that next game.”

The Panthers started the game fast and hot, connecting on multiple jump shots, but their inability to hustle on fast breaks prevented them from building a lead. The fast paced first quarter was a back-and-forth shootout between the rival schools. After eight minutes, the teams were only separated by three points, with the Tigers holding a 21-18 advantage.

Starr’s Mill played aggressive on defense and quickly grabbed the lead to start the second quarter. However, they couldn’t keep up the aggression and slowly fell into a hole. Senior Noah Gurley scored seven of his 17 points  in the second quarter as the Tigers outscored the Panthers 21-10 in the period. Fayette County’s full-court press forced multiple turnovers and the Tigers were able to enter halftime with a 14-point lead.

“Turnovers and bad shot selection,” Hutchins said. “We had some costly turnovers and [Fayette County] can make a run on you quick.”

Hutchins took his team to the locker room knowing the third quarter would be pivotal if the Panthers wanted to stay in the game. Even though they competed with the Tigers, Starr’s Mill was still outplayed in the third quarter. Nesmith’s five points in the quarter helped Fayette County put up 19 points to the Panthers’ 17. The Tigers outstanding shooting prevented any hopes of a Panther rally.

Down 16 entering the final quarter, the Panthers seemed to have lost the energy they  had been playing with previously. The Tigers scored a majority of their fourth quarter points from right under the basket. Panther defenders were caught sleeping on multiple occasions and easy baskets put the game away.

“Our guys feel like they can compete with anybody,” Hutchins said. “Any given night, they could miss some shots and we could’ve avoided some of those turnovers and it would’ve been a tight game.”

The team’s current record (9-5) is an improvement from the 6-8 start last year’s team had, and the Panthers can still easily finish as one of the top teams in the region. With region matchups against Riverdale and Griffin coming up, the Panthers can break out of their 4-way tie and vault to second place in the region. The Panthers face off against the 4-7 Raiders tonight at 7:30 p.m. Tomorrow, they will matchup with the 2-12 Griffin Bears.

The Lady Panthers also fell to Fayette County, 45-38. Like the boys, they have Riverdale and Griffin in upcoming games. Currently near the bottom of the region, the Lady Panthers are looking to move up in the region standings.  However, traveling to Riverdale won’t be easy with the girls starting the season 0-3 on the road.   The Lady Panthers will return home on Saturday to test the might of the region-leading Lady Bears who boast a 14-0 overall record.