Panthers see mixed results in big rivalry

While the records were important, the rivalry took precedence last week at Lakeside High School.

The Greenbrier High School basketball teams were visiting Lakeside Friday night, and with time running out in the regular season, the contests were pivotal in the Region 3-AAAA standings.

But coach Bill Richey didn't ask his Lakeside Lady Panthers to look at the big picture.

"We didn't even talk about playoff ramifications," Richey said. "It's just Lakeside-Greenbrier, and that's enough. If they can't get up for this game, they can't get up for any of them. Losing was not an option."

The Lady Panthers rose to the occasion and rolled to a 53-43 win.

In the boys game, Lakeside wilted down the stretch, as Greenbrier scored 28 fourth-quarter points en route to a 74-57 victory.

The Greenbrier and Lakeside girls had split their two previous games this season, with each squad winning on its home court. That trend continued Friday, thanks to a tenacious defensive effort by the Lady Panthers.

After Greenbrier jumped to a 6-0 lead, Lakeside senior Nichole Bennett blocked a shot by Lady Pack guard Cat Banks. That rejection fueled a 19-0 run by the Lady Panthers.

Lakeside primarily played a zone defense, but Lady Panther guards Toya Coard and Brittney Watts provided strong pressure as Greenbrier crossed half-court.

In turn, Bennett, Molly McFerran, Kelly Newman and Erica Jansen were free to roam the baseline, resulting in a 40-29 rebounding margin for Lakeside. Bennett, Newman and Jansen blocked two shots each, Bennett added seven steals and Jansen had a game-high 12 rebounds.

"Erica played one of her better games," Richey said. "The big key for her was making free throws down the stretch."

Jansen hit seven straight free throws in the fourth quarter, and finished with 13 points. Coard scored 18, and also had five assists.

Lakeside's fun ended in the second half of the boys' game. Greenbrier's Tommy McKinney and Richard Burke opened the third quarter with 3-point goals to forge a 34-29 lead.

From there, Greenbrier could do no wrong - the Pack hit 15 of 23 shots from the field in the second half, and was 13 for 18 at the foul line. When Greenbrier did miss, Eric Marshall was there to follow. The Pack junior had several put-back buckets and scored 24 points.

The Pack was so unstoppable, Lakeside did not record a single defensive rebound in the fourth quarter.

With its three-game sweep of Lakeside this season, the Pack is now positioned to make a move in the region standings.

"This week's games are going to be crucial," Greenbrier coach Danny Black said. "If we can win one of our last two games, we could possibly move up."

A real possibility is a another Greenbrier-Lakeside meeting next week in the Region 3-AAAA play-in games, both in the girls and boys brackets.

The play-in games pit the No. 8 and 9 seeds from the final regular-season region standings.

The Pack entered this week with four Region 3-AAAA wins, while the Panthers have won three region games. To escape the play-in game, Greenbrier or Lakeside would need to pass Josey.

Meanwhile, the Lady Wolfpack has three region wins, and the Lady Panthers have won two. The Butler Lady Bulldogs have three region wins and also are on the play-in bubble.

Greenbrier's teams close the regular season this week with region games against Statesboro (played Tuesday at the Brierpatch) and Josey (Friday road contests).

The Lakeside boys and girls finish at Hephzibah (played Tuesday) and Thomson (Friday at Lakeside).