Panthers claw Tigers 82-62

Posted 2/17/15

PHS dominated the entire game, turning back repeated Lander runs, and won going away, 82-62.

“It was a great win,” head coach Chase Kistler said Sunday. “It was a lot of fun to watch. Just seeing our potential, what level of ability we can …

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Panthers claw Tigers 82-62

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PHS dominates at Lander to hand 3A West leader first conference loss

The Powell Panthers took a big bite out of first-place Lander Valley on the Tigers’ home court Saturday night.

PHS dominated the entire game, turning back repeated Lander runs, and won going away, 82-62.

“It was a great win,” head coach Chase Kistler said Sunday. “It was a lot of fun to watch. Just seeing our potential, what level of ability we can play at, is a lot of fun to watch.”

A balanced attack led the way for the Panthers, with four players scoring in double figures

Kalei Smith, as usual, led the Panthers with 25 points, including 14 in the fourth quarter after sitting out most of the third period with three fouls. Fellow seniors Carter Baxter and Zach Heny both had 16 and Baxter added 10 rebounds. Junior Kristian Stenlund scored 12 off the bench, as the reserves contributed 19.

Cooxooeii Black paced Lander with 24 points and added six boards, and Jaxon Hedges scored 12 points and pulled down 14 rebounds. The Tigers were ranked third coming into the game but were clearly the second-best team on the court Saturday.

Kistler said there’s no doubt it was the best game the Panthers have played this season.

“It’s kinda what we’ve been working for all year, playing as a team,” he said. “We had a great week of practice and followed it up with a great game.”

The Panthers leaped out to an early lead and continued to build on it in the first half. The margin was 36-23 on a floater by Heny and when Smith blocked a shot and PHS gained possession of the ball, Powell continued to take control. The lead grew to 41-25 on a 3-pointer by Heny. Stenlund added a hoop on a fast break and was fouled. When he added the free throw, the Panthers had a 19-point lead and went into recess with a 44-27 edge.

Kistler said he was glad to see more of his players step up and contribute to the offense.

“They’ve always known that I’m for them shooting,” he said. “They got confident early and hit some shots and started scoring.”

The Panthers added some new plays, Kistler said. That allowed “the kids off the bench to get some open looks. We passed the ball well and found the open guy,” he said T”he younger guys had some confidence going and they actually worked the offense and got good shots.”

Powell maintained control even with Smith and Baxter both on the bench. Smith spent much of the third quarter on the pine with three fouls.

Black dunked to cut the lead to 47-31, but Baxter responded with a good fake and basket over Black to build the lead back up to 49-31. Baxter hit a triple as the period wound down to push the lead to 52-35. At the end of three, the Panthers held a 13-point lead as Baxter scored inside once more.

The taller Lander lineup continued to get second chances off the glass, as Hedges, a burly forward, repeatedly snared boards and scored inside. But Smith was back on the court and hit a 3-pointer as the quarter wound down.

He hit a 3-pointer after Kaden Moore and Baxter kept the ball alive in a furious scramble under the hoop. That gave the Panthers a 70-54 lead midway through the fourth period. Powell continued to hold a comfortable lead, moving it to 74-57 on a Moore bucket following a Baxter steal.

When Stenlund scored again Powell lead 76-57 with time winding down and Lander had no more runs left. Smith seized control of the game in the fourth quarter and that was no surprise to his coach.

“Basketball’s definitely a game of momentum,” Kistler said. “Once he gets momentum, it’s tough to stop him.”

Powell shot 50 percent from the field, hitting 20 of 41 from 2-point range and 9 of 17 from outside the arc. Lander shot 24 of 53 from close up but just 3 of 13 from distance. Powell won the battle of the boards 33-28. Both teams had eight turnovers.

Despite the dominating performance on the court that will host the regional tourney March 3-5, Kistler said there are still “a lot of things to improve” before the postseason.

“Our rebounding was lacking at times,” he said. “We still made some bad choices at times. We have to clean up some decision-making. There’s always room for improvement.”

Still, the ride home to Powell was a happy one.

“It was,” Kistler said. “They were pretty tuckered out., They were quiet. They were pretty tired but the mood was good.”

PHS moved to 4-2 in Class 3A West play and 9-7 overall. It was the first 3A West loss for Lander, dropping them to 5-1 in league play and 11-6 overall.

The Panthers face a challenging road trip this weekend, taking on Star Valley in Afton at 7 p.m. Friday and then playing Jackson at 2:30 p.m. Saturday.

“Those are always tough places to get wins,” Kistler said. “They are very disciplined teams.”

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