Smith’s field goals to start fourth quarter make certain Panthers hold Pirates at bay

PALMYRA, Mo. —The Palmyra boys basketball team scored the first 21 points Tuesday night against Hannibal.

Game, set, match. Right?

Well, not quite.

Palmyra was not able to deliver what amounted to be the ultimate knockout punch until the opening minutes of the fourth quarter. That’s when the Panthers’ 6-foot-3 Mason Smith connected on a pair of field goals that set the stage for an eventual 59-41 victory in front of a crowd of about 900.

Hannibal had worked itself back to within 41-30 after three quarters, but when Smith dropped in his back-to-back two-pointers to begin the final period, the air had officially been let out of the Hannibal balloon.

“I think those two field goals kind of broke their back,” said Smith, who finished with a game-best 21 points.

Smith, one of three seniors on the Panthers’ roster, said he did not feel as if there had been a letdown following the first quarter when Palmyra opened up its huge lead. The Panthers’ defense missed throwing a shutout in that quarter by 13.7 seconds when a late Hannibal free throw ended the period with Palmyra atop 21-1.

“I don’t think we (lost our intensity),” Smith said. “We stuck to our game plan and did a good job. We played really well most of the game.”

The victory moved Palmyra (19-5) closer to its third 20-win season in the last four years. Palmyra has already clinched an eighth straight winning record.

“We’re getting to where we need to be,” Smith said. “This moved us one step closer.”

Luke Sheppard seconded Smith in the scoring column with 14 points. Hudson Bock added seven points for the Panthers, who led 37-17 at halftime before being outscored 13-4 in the third quarter.

“Any win is a good win,” Palmyra coach Brian Rea said. “There have been some ups and downs this season, but we’re on an uptick right now.”

Palmyra has won five of its last six and increased its winning streak against Hannibal to seven.

Hannibal coach Josh Pickett, whose club dropped to 1-17, preferred to look at the positives.

“We started out down 21-0, and I was proud of the kids’ effort to be able to fight back and get within 41-30,” he said. “After that first quarter, we outscored them (40-38).”

Pickett said the success of this season will not be found in the win-loss record.

“We’re playing a lot of young guys (29 of the team’s 41 points were scored by sophomores) and we’ve improved each game in some way,” Pickett said. “We’re just trying to figure out how to put four quarters together. We want our kids to be able to play loose, but within a framework.

“The rest of the season will be a test of our character, to see how we regroup and continue to come together as a team.”

Nate Waters (8) and Wyeth Dorsey (7) led Hannibal in scoring.

Hannibal has dropped 12 in a row since its 58-55 win over Quincy Notre Dame on Dec. 14. The Pirates, who have lost 18 straight road games dating to last season, are trying to avoid their first 20-loss season since 2009 when Hannibal ended 3-23.