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Wednesday, December 19, 2007 The Braselton News Page 3B Girls' Basketball Lady Panthers hold off Lady Eagles Bovs' Basketball Panthers earn season sweep over rival Eagles BY ALLEN LUTON Winners of three of their last four games overall, the Jackson County girls head into this week’s rare Thursday night game at West Hall playing some of their best basketball this sea son. But regardless of how the rest of the campaign plays out, the squad may still not produce a result as satisfying as the one it came up with this past Saturday night — at least not in terms of emotion. On that occasion, the Lady Panthers not only topped new ly-found rival East Jackson in front of the home fans at The Pit, but in so doing it also earned a season sweep of the Lady Eagles, claiming victory for the second time in as many meetings this year. JCCHS used a solid first half flurry of points to take a 24-16 lead at the half. And although East Jackson fought back, it was the youth-laden Lady Panthers that showed that despite their inexperience, they are capa ble of finishing games in the clutch.. In the end, Jackson County made enough plays, combined with a few important free throws, to pull out a 34-32 low- scoring win. Normally known as a team that looks to push the pace of the game, the Lady Panthers were reduced to changing their strategy on Saturday. When the several key starters got into foul trouble head coach Chad Pittman called on his bench to step up and show the team’s balance. “I’ve been really pleased with the kids. I think if you watch our team, they play together and I think the kids play hard and I think what’s been really helpful for us this season, that every night it seems like we’ve got one person or two people that stand up every night.” Because of those foul prob lems, the Lady Panthers opted to take the air out of the ball in the second half. What eventu ally resulted was a few nervous moments near the end of the contest, but yet still another vic tory for JCCHS. Lollowing the win, Pittman not only praised the play of the Lady Panthers down the stretch, but also his team’s ability to adjust the style of play when it AT THE LINE Jackson County’s Alysa Esco prepares to shoot a free throw as the home fans look on at The Pit this past Saturday. Photo by Lyn Sengupta mattered most. “I went into the stall and backed it out into four corners because I felt like we weren’t having the best offensive night we’ve ever had and we were in foul trouble,” the JCCHS coach said. East Jackson out-scored JCCHS 7-6 in sluggish third quarter of play. Jackson County ’ s lead proved too difficult for the Lady Eagles to overcome in the second half. The JCCHS coach said the inaugural rivalry between the two schools this year is a good one for both teams and the fact that his squad was able to sweep East Jackson makes it all the more memorable for the Lady Panthers. “I think it’s great,” Pittman said. “I think the atmosphere and energy in the gym was tremendous. If you’re a high school kid, you can’t ask for much better. It kind of simulates a state tournament-type game. The communities and the adults and everybody kind of got into it. Ultimately, we’re playing a basketball game out here, but really you’re repre senting two different communi ties. “This is kind of history this year, this is the first time their school has opened and I said to my kids that it’s kind of like when Georgia and Georgia Tech play — when you win, you kind of get to brag for a year and the loser sort of droops their head for a year.” BY ALLEN LUTON T’S taken the Jackson County boys’ basketball program just a few short weeks to rediscover the lost sensa tion of optimism. This past Saturday night, the Panthers (3-5, 1-0 in 8-AAAA North) earned a season sweep of an East Jackson squad that, despite being in just its first season of existence has already become a major rival to JCCHS. In the process, this year’s Panthers have already managed to accomplish something that hasn’t been done at Jackson County in more than three years — win more than two games overall. What’s more, the team has reached the three-win mark just several weeks into the season. Jackson County’s 50-45 victory over the Eagles came thanks to a poised performance that saw the team jump out to a 10-point lead from the start, a lead it never relin quished. The Panthers were up nine at the half, 12 later on in the third and eventually held on down the stretch. East Jackson did its best to rally, but despite several Panthers in foul trouble, the Eagles could not take the lead. The Jackson County team was clutch at the free throw line on the night, converting 18-of-25 shots at the charity stripe. Marquice Gillispie led the Panthers with 20 points and seven rebounds. Joseph Smith added 11 points and Will Wolter chipped in with eight. The home win for the Panthers came two weeks after the squad also was victorious at East Jackson. For Jackson County head coach Britt Beaver, the fact that his youth-laden squad was able to outperform a more experienced EJHS team for the second time this season was impressive. “I was very proud of the way my guys played as a team,” Beaver, in his first year at the helm at JCCHS, said. “Everyone contrib uted and when we lost a few key players to fouls, our bench stepped up and gave us great minutes.” The victory over the Eagles capped a 2-1 week for the Panthers. They also defeated sub-region foe Habersham Central on the road on Dec. 11 and then lost to Heritage this past Friday night. Beaver credited his players for coming out ready to play on Saturday despite being blown out 77-34 the night prior against the Patriots. “We were tired after taking a beating from a very good Heritage team on Friday night, but the kids sucked it up and did what they had to do to get the win,” Beaver explained. “We are improving in all areas and that is good to see. Our students did an excellent job displaying good sportsman ship and supporting our team. The school is full of excitement and I am proud to be a Panther.” Due mostly to a large number of transfers to East Jackson, many of the athletic teams at JCCHS have had to go into re-building mode after the opening of the new $43 million EJHS facility back in August. With players on both teams hav ing played together last season at JCCHS, its no wonder that a rival ry has already developed between the two schools. But, at least for this inaugural season of play between the two, Jackson County has earned bragging rights. Up Next: WHAT: Jackson County vs. West Hall WHERE: The Pit at JCCHS When: Thurs., 7:30 p.m. ATTENTION! HAVE YOU GOT CREDIT CONCERNS? Do you need a 2nd chance with your vehicle financing? Do you need dependable transportation? LET YOUR JOB HISTORY AND YOUR DOWN PAYMENT BE YOUR CREDIT! 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