The South Iron Panthers were on cruise control down the stretch of the regular season, but the Fatima Comets and the Steelville Cardinals have upset the apple cart. The Boys Varsity Basketball team has been challenging themselves by playing opponents from higher class schools to prep for a postseason run, but the results haven’t been fortuitous. Tuesday’s 77-70 loss to Steelville being the most recent example, and also marking the only time they’ve suffered back-to-back losses this season.
The Panthers took to the road in this one and knew they had a tough challenge ahead of them in the 18-7 Cardinals. The first quarter was as tight as it gets, with both teams putting up 16 points, but Steelville stepped it up a bit in the second and took the frame 23-19. That four-point padding would loom large heading into the second half.
Using the momentum they gathered in the previous quarter, the Cardinals kept the pressure on after the break and handed the Panthers a 17-11 third. That gave them a double-digit lead going into the final eight minutes of play, and suddenly South Iron had their work cut out for them. The Panthers scratched and clawed in the fourth, but their 24-21 effort wasn’t quite enough and they fell just short in the 77-70 loss.
This game was a learning experience though, and losing to a Class 3 school on the road isn’t a breakdown. It was a valiant effort against a much larger program that produced an exciting and fairly even test of two solid teams. Head Coach Dusty Dinkins commented on the effort, saying, “Steelville is a really good Class 3 team. They have size, athleticism and are very skilled on offense. We had a difficult time stopping them on defense, but we showed great heart, effort and determination. Our execution just wasn’t were it need to be.”
Despite being on the losing end, Drenin Dinkins had a monster game with 34 points, eight rebounds and three steals to continue his incredible season. DJ Prater complimented him nicely with South Iron’s only double-double, as he put up 20 points, snatched 10 boards and led the team with five assists. Those two pretty much carried the offense and were largely responsible for keeping the game as close as it was.
The next test will be against another talented opponent as the Panthers will take on the Class 4 Tigers from Festus.
