Brookhaven center Anna Autman tossed in a career-high 30 pointsTuesday night as the Lady Panthers outdistanced the Terry LadyBulldogs 57-39 in a Division 6-4A test in Sinclair Gym. Despite a9-point third quarter lead, the Brookhaven Panthers completed thedoubleheader sweep with a 68-50 division win over the TerryBulldogs.

Brookhaven closes out the regular season Friday, hostingDivision 6-4A rival McComb in Sinclair Gym. The division tournamentgets under way Tuesday, Feb. 17, at McComb.

The Lady Panthers (17-11, 8-3), ranked third inthe division, were without the services of sophomore point guardBlanche Wilson for the second consecutive game. Wilson was injuredin the final seconds of Brookhaven’s win over Lawrence County onFeb. 3.

“We missed Blanche tonight,” said Brookhaven head coach BillyHolmes who is in his second year at BHS. “We did not get into ouroffense.”

Autman, a 6-foot senior, ruled the paint throughout the game.She also had 8 rebounds, 2 blocked shots and 3 steals for Holmes.Autman used a variety of low-post moves to garner 20 first-halfpoints as her teammates held an 11-6 advantage after one period andled 26-17 at the intermission.

Terry (1-25, 0-12, 7th), coached by Phatsis Winfrey, could notfind an answer for Autman. The Lady Bulldogs were outrebounded37-20 and trailed 41-31 entering the final quarter. Amber Browntallied a team-high 14 points. Chiquita Harrison grabbed 5rebounds. Latrinda Wilson had 4 steals.

Lending support for Brookhaven were Ashley Leggett with 10points (2 treys), 2 steals and 2 assists. Kristian McCray pumped in11 points and pulled down 9 rebounds. Latoria Kerr had 9 reboundsand dished out 4 assists. Chiquita Rancifer and Brianna Patton eachhad 3 assists. Patton had 7 rebounds.

The Panthers (14-14, 5-6), standing fifth inthe division race, were looking to gain a split with the Bulldogsin the season series. Terry defeated Brookhaven 77-72 on Jan. 9, atTerry.

Brookhaven, under the direction of Ronald Hines, took control ofthe game early with a 15-8 first quarter lead. The Panthers scored3 of their first 6 baskets on offensive putbacks. Senior centerPhilip Tobias authored the first 2 baskets of the game, andfinished with 11 points and 14 rebounds.

Panther forward Jasper Hall scored the final 8 points of thefirst period (2 treys), and 6 of the next 7 points to start thesecond stanza. Brookhaven went on a 14-2 run over 4 minutes to takea 22-10 lead.

Terry (13-18, 4-8 7th) stopped the run on a basket by JoeWillis. The Bulldogs, coached by Reggie Magee, trailed 35-12 athalftime; scoring only 4 points in the second period.

Magee’s ballclub made their move in the third frame, outscoringthe Panthers 18-9. Matthew Fortson scored 10 of his team-high 14points in the period, to trail 44-30 entering the fourth.

Bulldog Terencio Powell opened the final 8 minutes by scoring 6of Terry’s first 8 points, including 4-of-4 from the charitystripe. Willis’s trey with over 6 minutes left in the game broughthis team to within 9 points, at 49-40. Terry would not get anycloser.

The Panthers went 9-of-12 from the free throws line, and gotbaskets from Hall, Tobias, Jermaine Culver and Ganeiro Richardsonto close out the evening.

“I thought we played pretty well, despite the third quarter,”said Hines.

Hall led all scorers with 19 points, 8 rebounds and 2 blockedshots. Rodney Daniels had 3 steals. Richardson had 3 assists.Michael Thrasher drew 2 charges. The Panthers, who outrebounded theBulldogs 43-23, committed 24 turnovers to 20 by Terry.

“Friday night’s game (against McComb) is a big one,” said Hineswho was referring to his team’s final regular-season home game.

McComb handed Brookhaven a 78-71 overtime loss Jan. 30, atMcComb. It will be Senior Night for the Lady Panther and Pantherbasketball players in Sinclair Gymnasium.