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Liberty splits with Glynn Academy
Panthers lose, but Lady Panthers win
BriannaReece
Liberty Countys Brianna Reece fires a jumper over defenders during the Lady Panthers win on Friday over Glynn Academy. The Panthers fell to the Red Terrors in the nightcap. - photo by Phgoto by Patty Leon

Having three players sink seven 3-point shots in the first half of a game is one way to ensure a 20-point lead and a win.
It worked well Friday night at Liberty County High School but it was Glynn Academy making the shots to win 78-58.
The loss has planted the Liberty boys firmly in last place of Region 2A-AAAA at 1-4.
The boys opened up the season with an 11-0 run before hitting region action. They are currently 13-4 overall. At the close of the first the Terrors lead by only four points but scored 15 points in the second quarter from behind the 3-point line to outscore Liberty 22-9 before intermission.
Glynn Academy kept its 20 point cushion because the Panthers couldn’t close the gap against a very physical form of play from the Terrors.
In the fourth quarter, Liberty managed to press and caught a few breaks off of turnovers but Glynn would answer every basket to maintain the point spread and win. Glynn ended up with nine shots from the trey range for the game.
“They were extremely physical and they killed us on the boards offensively and defensively,” Panthers coach Willie Graham said. “It’s the first time that has happened that bad…and they shot the ball well.”
Graham said he was pleased his players never quit and hustled to the end. In the last quarter the Panthers managed to double their scoring from previous quarters and Derrick Brooks paced the team with 25 points in the game, 18 in the fourth quarter.
Graham said he is not discouraged The Panthers have now played each region opponent once and will begin their second round of region play on Tuesday at Richmond Hill.
He said they will study film from the previous region games and have time to prepare for the second round.
“We still have to keep fighting,” he said. “We’ll adjust team by team…the hard thing is we have most of the games on the road this time but we will take them one at a time.”
In the preceding game the Lady Panthers earned their third region win defeating Glynn 56-40. The girls opened with a 3-point lead at the close of the first period and steadily opened the margin throughout the game.
Glynn took advantage of a few turnovers and were better on the boards but Diamone Johnson, Brianna Reece and Bryonna Graham quickly brought the game back to their pace for the win.
Johnson led the girls with 13 points but left the game a few times to rest her sore knee. Reece and Graham chipped in seven points each. Kymberli Payno (6-foot-1) used her height to stay inside and score six points off a steal and two passes from Courtney Rhodes and Reece.
The Lady Panthers are 9-5 overall and 3-2 in the region, and are in third place behind Richmond Hill and Brunswick.
Liberty County was scheduled to travel to Tattnall County on Saturday for a nonregion matchup.


Girls
Liberty Co. 56, Glynn Academy 40
Liberty - Diamone Johnson 13, Brianna Reece 7, Bryonna Graham 7, Kymberli Payno 6, Courtney Rhodes5, Jasmina Smith 5, Emone Fisher 5, Tiara Howard 3, Jakaria Fleming 2, Kierra Hall 2, Jaelynn James 1


Boys
Glynn 78, Liberty 58
Liberty - Derrick Brooks 25, Sayvon Wilson 11, Michael Farrior 8, Aaron Scott 6, Connor Bailey 6, Raekwon McMillan 2

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