The Benton Lady Panthers hosted last year’s 5A state runner-up Parkview Lady Patriots on Tuesday at Benton Arena. Benton got down early, but hung the rest of the way, yet would still fall 56-46 against a very good squad to snap a three-game win streak.
“They came out and hit three threes right off the bat,” Benton Coach Jerry Chumley said. “They just kind of jumped on us. They shoot a lot of threes and we played them some zone there early. They knocked down three threes in the first quarter and got that 9-point lead.”
Parkview (5-2) would lead 15-8 after one and pushed it to 28-19 at the half, but the Lady Panthers would hang tough the rest of the way, despite not being able to get over that hump.
“After that, we played with them,” Chumley said. “We just never really could make a run. We had one run in the fourth quarter where we cut it to six and we had to foul there in the end and they ended up making some free throws.”
After starting off slow from the free-throw line, Parkview senior and Southeastern Louisiana University signee Kania Lasker would shoot 17 free throws in the fourth quarter alone and finished with a game-high 31 points.
“(Lasker) was the one we were fouling at the end because she initially went 1 for 6 from the free-throw line in the first three quarters,” Chumley said. “So when we started fouling, we started fouling her and she shot 17 free throws in the fourth quarter. She made several there at the end to get them up back 10.”
For Benton (3-4), junior forward Makenzy Davidson led the way with 14 points and eight rebounds, but also had eight turnovers. Senior Italei Gray had 13 points and six rebounds and junior Kati Morrow made it three Lady Panthers in double figures with 12 points.
Benton will host the Prescott Curley Wolves on Friday at Benton Arena before really upping their game play the next two weeks before the Christmas break.