The Benton Lady Panthers jumped to a 20-4 lead after one quarter and never looked back in a 63-41 victory over the Mills Lady Comets on Tuesday in 6A/5A District 5 action in Little Rock. It was Benton’s first district win as it improves to 7-9 overall and 1-2 in district play.
Up 3-2 early in the first, the Lady Panthers went on a 14-0 run which was capped by two Kennedy Stringfellow 3-pointers and senior Anna Davis would end the quarter with an and-1 layup for the 16-point first-quarter lead.
Benton returns home Friday to take on the Pine Bluff Fillies at Benton Arena.
Comets 67, Panthers 54
A tough first quarter would sink the Benton Panthers against one of the best teams in the state Tuesday as the Panthers had a 14-point deficit after one against the Mills Comets. Benton would outscore Mills the rest of the way, but the damage was done in the first as the Comets downed the Panthers 67-54 in Little Rock to give Benton its first 6A/5A District 5 loss of the season.
“That first quarter is what really hurt us,” said Benton Head Coach Dexter Hendrix. “We couldn’t catch up from there. The scouting report and game plan was all about tempo and you have to give Mills credit. They did a lot to get the game to their tempo, their style of play. We tried to do everything we could to win that battle, but unfortunately they beat us to it. They hit some tough shots there in the first quarter — some deep threes, transition threes that made it really tough for us.”
The Panthers return to Benton Arena Friday to take on the Pine Bluff Zebras.