Written by: Danny Talbert
Kameron McCall 20-point game and Jace Herrell's masterclass in shooting pushed the Panthers pass Centre
First half
In the first ten minutes of the game, both teams kept it neck and neck. At this point, LC led 26-25 and each team had the lead twice. Over the next five minutes, Centre began making smart shots in the LC paint and taking advantage of the Panther fouls. They led 38-30 with under five to go. Both teams traded points the rest of the way and a late Jace Herrell three brought their lead to 46-40. Centre scored 28 points in the paint versus the Panthers 15, and out rebounded LC 18-10. The best string of plays of the half happened when Kameron McCall hit a three pointer five minutes into the game. The Panthers then played lights out defense and forced a bad shot, and then drove down the court for Gabe Cofield to hit back-to-back LC threes.
Second half
Centre came out in the second half continuing to take advantage of the Panthers turnovers. Despite some early woes for LC, the Panthers continued to fight. With 12 minutes left, LC cut their lead to 59-55. The play of the half came right after this, when Brodie Scott stole the ball and found Jace Herrell behind the arc for him to knock down a three. This cut their lead to 59-58 with 11 minutes remaining. With five minutes left, LC led 70-69. This was due to the Panthers hard rebounding, communication and the fact that their shots started falling. They also slowed down Centre's inside the paint scoring In the final five minutes, the Panthers continued to play team basketball and hold on to win 87-77.
Key Panther performances
Kameron McCall had a team-high 20 points in today's hard fought match. He shot 70% from the field and 66% from beyond the arc.
Jace Herrell also had a great performance today. He scored 18 while shooting 66% from three and 63% from the field. This included three late-game threes to help close the Centre lead.
Next game details
The Panthers face Oglethorpe tomorrow at 5 p.m. The game can be streamed here.
