Panthers snap 12-game skid with 64-61 overtime win over King & Queen

Charles City's Kyle Jones drives by King & Queen's Alex Holmes for two of his 11 points.

Andre' Jones photo

Charles City did something they have struggled to do all year during a Jan. 23 matchup against the visiting King & Queen Tigers; hit clutch free throws.

Kyle Jones converted all five free throw attempts in the fourth quarter, including two with 2.6 seconds remaining in regulation as the host Panthers snapped a 12-game skid with a 64-61 overtime victory over the Tigers.

Early in the contest, Charles City looked to be in firm control, as junior forward Michael Callahan drained three trifectas to give the hosts a 9-4 early advantage. But the Tigers played their way back into the game, eventually grabbing the lead at the end of the first quarter (16-15).

Both teams continued to play evenly, unable to pull away from one another. Even when King and Queen converted a traditional three-point play at the end of the second quarter, the Panthers countered as guard Jestin Harris heaved a three-quarters court shot at the buzzer that went through the rim, knotting the score at 27 apiece at the intermission.

A Brian Hicks lay-in along with Callahan’s fourth three-pointer on the night led to the Panthers biggest lead of the night in the third frame (36-31) just under the four minute mark. However, the visitors countered with a 12-3 run, powered by three-pointers on consecutive trips by Mahlik Natiel and Kalyle Holmes. Those baskets powered King & Queen to a 43-39 advantage heading into the fourth quarter.

An Alex Holmes three to start the final quarter gave the guests their largest lead of the night (46-39). But Charles City rallied, with Callahan following a missed shot attempt and a pair of free throws from Jones. Jones’ steal at the 1:24 mark led to a conventional three-point play, narrowing the deficit to one (52-51). After Harris’ free throw tied the game, the Tigers used a free throw from Maurice Byrd and Holmes follow on Byrd’s second miss to push the lead back up to three (55-52).

Charles City recovered, with Harris steal on an inbound and lay-in to cut the lead to one with 24 seconds remaining. The Panthers fouled Alex Holmes, who sank the front end of a one-and-one with 10.6 remaining. His second shot fell off the rim, with a scramble for the loose ball. Jones recovered the ball and was fouled before escaping, resulting in two free throws. Jones converted both from the charity stripe, sending the game into overtime.

Similar to the flow of the game, both teams exchanged baskets in the four-minute extra frame. It wasn’t until a tough lay-up by Noah Ragland with 34 seconds showing on the clock would give the Panthers the lead for good (62-61). Callahan stole an errant Tiger pass, resulting in Ragland fouled with 17.3 on the clock. The junior guard converted one of two free throws to give the Panthers a 63-61 lead.

The Tigers pushed the ball down the court, but a misstep by Byrd on the out-of-bounds line returned possession to the Panthers. Panther guard Brian Hicks was fouled with 2.8 seconds, resulting in him converting the second of two free throws (64-61).

With only four eligible players on the floor after having three foul out and 8.9 seconds showing on the clock, the visitors managed to escape Charles City’s pressure defense. A three-point attempt by Alex Holmes in front of the guests’ bench went wide right, with Callahan snagging the rebound to seal the victory for the Panthers.

After the game, head coach Cullen Jenkins spoke about his team’s aggression and getting to the rim as a focal point in the victor.

“We talked about not settling for three-pointers and going for better shots,” the victorious coach commented. “We wanted to take their post player [Paul Lewis] out the game because he hurt us when we went there.

“We also wanted to get out to an early start,” he continued. “Right now, we’re not a team that can play from behind, but Callahan draining those opening three-pointers helped us go the way we needed.”

Charles City (2-14) converted 20 of 34 free throws from the line, compared to the Tigers 12 of 28.

“We worked on our free throw shooting and more game situations,” Jenkins added. “We knew this was a team we could play and I’m glad we played well enough to earn this win.”

Ragland (15), Callahan (14), and Jones (11) finished in double figures for the victors. Harris scored nine points, Hicks added six, Jaquane Wyatt tossed in four, and Charles Vaden and Thomas Kelly contributed 3 and 2 respectively.

Alex Holmes led all scorers in the game with 16 points.