The Paris News

Plenty went wrong for North Lamar Friday night — 15 missed free throws, a myriad of turnovers and a plethora of fouls — but the Panthers overcame all that.

Just barely.

With each team missing three players at the end of the game due to fouls and ejections, North Lamar scored the final five points to defeat Mount Pleasant 61-56 for its 12th consecutive victory in Panther Gym.

The victory pushed the Panthers into a three-way tie for second place in District 11-4A with Mount Pleasant and Lindale.

To call the game "physical and emotional" would akin to calling Michael Jordan nothing more than a decent basketball player. North Lamar's Justin Collard and Hawk Hawkins said it was the most physical game they've played this season.

"We're not going to back down," Collard said.

Referees called 50 fouls and assessed four technical fouls. Two players on each team fouled out, and two other players — North Lamar's Patrick Thomas and Mount Pleasant's Ray Savage — were ejected after they drew double technical fouls with 4:32 left in the fourth quarter.

"That was the most fouls in a game I've ever been involved in," North Lamar coach Homer Garner said. "You had two teams that are really competitive vying for a playoff spot in a heated environment."

Mount Pleasant, one of the favorites to earn a playoff spot, entered the game in second place in District 11-4A, one-game ahead of the Panthers, who were coming off a loss Tuesday to crosstown rival Paris.

"We needed a tough game," Collard said. "We needed that confidence."

Garner said he spoke candidly to his team after the possibly-demoralizing loss to Paris.

"We talked Wednesday about how a championship rebounds from a big loss," Garner said. "How you handle that loss in the next game defines good teams."

Consider North Lamar (14-8, 2-1) defined.

The Panthers, who never trailed, opened the game on a 13-3 run in the first 4:08. Hawkins had 10 of those points — all on layups — while North Lamar broke the full-court press employed by the Tigers.

"It was great," Garner said. "We're known for fast starts at home. That set the tone."

North Lamar relied on that fast start to maintain its lead until 1:58 remained in the game. Mount Pleasant's quickness and unyielding pressure forced the Panthers to commit 28 turnovers.

Despite a size disadvantage, the Tigers (15-10, 2-1) grabbed 18 offensive rebounds and clawed their way, little by little, back into the game. Mount Pleasant tied the game at 56 with 1:58 left in the game.

"I was like, 'What are we doing?" said Hawkins, who finished with 16 points and eight rebounds. "We needed to slow it down. We practiced, we were ready, but we didn't slow it down."

With the game tied at 56 with just more than a minute left, Qualon Fort came up with the biggest play of the game for the Panthers. Fort cleanly stole the ball from his man and passed to Mark Schrock, who relayed a perfect pass to Sinjin Smith.

Smith, who scored nine, layed the ball up and in with 1:06 remaining to give his team a two-point lead.

Were it not for fouls and ejections, Schrock probably would never have been in position to make such a crucial play in such a climactic setting.

"He was thrown into the fire and made a huge play in the ball game," Garner said. "He really made a pivotal play late in the game. That kind of stuff isn't noticed by everybody, but it is by me."

A rebound by Hawkins with 20 seconds left gave the Panthers the ball back and they completed the scoring when the game finished the same way it started — with a layup by Hawkins.

He was fouled hard on the play and knocked his head on the floor, which led to him being taken out before the ensuing free throw. After the game, Hawkins said he had a "booming headache."

The Panthers' biggest victory to date might be the right medicine to cure what ails him. At the very least, the victory washed away the bad taste left in North Lamar's mouth after losing to Paris.

"I think we grew as a team," Garner said. "We kept our composure. We handled adversity and found a way to win. That's all you can ask."

Collard had 12 points, five assists and two steals, Thomas had 12 points, eight rebounds and two blocks. Fort finished with nine points, eight rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks.

Fort, Thomas and Collard combined to score all 17 points for the Panthers in the third quarter when they built a nine-point advantage heading into the fourth. Fort scored seven, Thomas had six and Collard added four for North Lamar in the quarter.

Mount Pleasant's Trenston Hill led all scorers with 18. Jason Armstead scored 12 and Tye Lewis had 11.

North Lamar won both sub-varsity games against Mount Pleasant earlier in the evening.

The freshmen came back from a 12-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat the Tigers 42-37 behind 18 points from Riley Chipman.

The junior varsity defeated Mount Pleasant 50-47. DeShantis Braxton scored 16 for the Panthers.

North Lamar travels to Lindale Tuesday. The Eagles defeated Texas High Friday night, 65-47. Tuesday’s winner will hold the inside track on one of three available playoff spots.

The Panthers return home Friday to play Sulphur Springs at 7 p.m.

NORTH LAMAR 61, MT. PLEASANT 56

MP 10 15 13 18 — 56 NL 19 11 17 14 — 61

Mount Pleasant (15-10, 2-1) — Trenston Hill 18, Jason Armstead 12, Tye Lewis 11, Tyrone Rogers 7, Kendrick Walker 3, Pooh Hoskins 3, Bee Williams 2. Free throws: 10-16. Threes: 2 (Hill, Rogers). Fouls: 28.

North Lamar (14-8, 2-1) — Hawk Hawkins 16, Justin Collard 12, Patrick Thomas 12, Qualon Fort 9, Sinjin Smith 9, Zack Johnson 3. Free throws: 11-26. Threes: 0. Fouls: 22.

North Lamar 66, Mount Pleasant 42 (girls) MOUNT PLEASANT — A word of advice for future North Lamar opponents: Don't give the Pantherettes any more fuel to add to their motivational fire.

No. 10 North Lamar defeated Mount Pleasant 66-42 Friday night to move into first place in District 11-4A by a game over the Lady Tigers, who defeated the Pantherettes in the final game last season to earn the district championship.

North Lamar (23-5, 5-0) already had that fresh in its mind, but shortly before game time, one of its players found a Mount Pleasant scouting report breaking down each of the Pantherettes' strengths and weaknesses.

Bad move.

The Pantherettes, more or less, made the Lady Tigers (18-8, 4-1) pay for their carelessness. Emily Fouse scored a game-high 20 to lead four North Lamar players in double-figures.

"Emily Fouse really played well," North Lamar coach Roy Tom Stone said. "Emily had one of her best games. She saw the floor and handled the ball really well."

Chelsie Shackelford scored 16, Ashley Endsley had 15 and Ali Stone had 10 for the Pantherettes, who are halfway through their district season. North Lamar’s closest district game was a 15-point victory against Sulphur Springs.

"We're where we hoped to be — that was our goal," Roy Tom Stone said. "I couldn't be more pleased...although there is room for improvement."

Stone also praised Ali Stone and Logan Anglin for the duo's front-court defense.

"Logan and Ali played their usual steady game," Stone said. "They played good defense against their two big girls."

The Pantherettes continue their quest for their third district title in the last four years Tuesday against Lindale at 6:30 p.m. in Panther Gym.

NORTH LAMAR 66, MT. PLEASANT 42

NL 20 12 17 17 — 66 MP 16 6 8 12 — 42

North Lamar (23-5, 5-0) — Emily Fouse 20, Chelsie Shackelford 16, Ashley Endsley 15, Ali Stone 10, Logan Anglin 4, Chloe Troutt 3. Free throws: 18-24. Threes: 0. Fouls: 15.

Mount Pleasant (18-8, 4-1) — Smith 18, Thomas 11, Wilson 6, Perez 5, Newton 1, Henderson 1. Free throws: 14-19. Threes: 1 (Perez). Fouls: 18.

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