MONTICELLO — Sometimes rivalry games bring out the best inplayers. Nothing could have been further from the truth New Year’sEve as Division 6-4A rivals Brookhaven and Lawrence County collidedin a non-division matchup in the Lawrence County Round-RobinTournament.

Lawrence County’s David Clark torched Ole Brook for acareer-high 41 points as the Cougars scorched the Panthers 67-45.The Brookhaven Lady Panthers, using a balanced scoring attack,roared past the Lawrence County Lady Cougars 53-35.

The Division 6-4A tests take place Jan. 25 at Brookhaven andFeb. 1 at Lawrence County.

In other tournament action, Mendenhall swept Franklin County.The Lady Tigers slipped past the Lady Bulldogs 60-58 while theTigers beat the Bulldogs 59-46.

Brookhaven 53, Lawrence County 35

The Lady Panthers (4-8), with the height advantage, went to workin the paint, authoring a 13-5 first quarter lead. Portia Dickey, a5-foot-10 junior forward, tossed in 9 points in the period on avariety of short-range jumpers.

Ole Brook, coached by Billy Holmes, continued their balancedscoring attack in the second quarter. Baskets by Alesha Irvin andSwayze Black, along with free throws from Black Kayla Harris andJermecia Jones, gave the Lady Panthers a 24-11-halftimecushion.

Lawrence Co. (3-9) outscored Ole Brook in the third 13-12 butfound themselves trailing 36-24 entering the final period. Seniorguard Ronesha Garner tossed in 12 of her game-high 16 points in thequarter for first year head coach Jennie Vance. Garner also had 7rebounds, 3 steals and 5 assists.

Black paced Ole Brook with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Dickeyfinished with 11 points and 2 steals. Blanche Wilson dished out 4assists. Irvin had 2 steals.

Lending support for the Lady Cougars were Erical Bryant with 8rebounds. Brittney Sherman had 7 boards. Tiara Buckley had 2assists.

LCHS committed 27 turnovers,while forcing Ole Brook into 22 oftheir own. The Lady Panthers outrebounded the Lady Cougars31-27.

Lawrence Co. 67, Brookhaven 45

If you were looking for intensity in a rivalry game, look nofurther than the New Years Eve’s Brookhaven/Lawrence County boyscontest. It was a physical matchup which features several playersfrom both squads being sent to their respective benches to cooldown heated tempers.

Clark, a 6-foot-6 senior center who averages just under 25points per game, scored on a variety of slam dunks, offensiveputbacks and long-range shots. Aided by a pair of treys from Clarkin the opening 8 minutes, the Cougars headed into the second framewith a 15-10 lead. Clark had 10 points in the period.

The Panthers (6-9) made numerous substitutions throughout thenight to try and slow down Clark who had 22 points at theintermission. Ole Brook, coached by Ronald Hines, trailed 31-21 athalftime.

LCHS (12-1) opened the floodgates in the third by outscoring thePanthers 22-6. The Cougars would hold a 25-point lead, 52-27entering the fourth quarter.

The final 8 minutes saw both teams empty their benches.

The Panthers were led by Bud Chatman with 14 points and 7rebounds. Michael Thrasher added 13 points, 17 rebounds and 3assists. Charles Rancifer had 3 steals and 3 assists.

The Cougars, coached by Bobby Lee, got support from JustinMiddlebrook with 10 points, 3 steals and 3 assists. Craig Tyler andJ.P. Lewis each had 7 rebounds. Ray Collins had 4 steals and 5assists.

The rebounding battle was deadlocked at 34-34. The Cougarscommitted 20 turnovers while the Panthers had 27.

Mendenhall 60, Franklin Co. 58

The Lady Tigers (11-6) were led by Angelica Burgess with 35points. Tiffany Lawson added 20 and Duquesne Bickham tossed in 12for head coach Archie Skiffer.

The Bulldogs (11-2), coached by Charles Moore, got a game-high27 points from Victoria Hunt. Shareka Hunt pumped in 16 whileTamera Gant scored 10.

Mendenhall 59, Franklin Co. 46

Mendenhall’s Darrell Johnson held game-high honors with 30points, followed by Reco Daniels and Garrick Walker with 10 pointseach. The Tigers (14-4) are coached by Jeff Walker.

The Bulldogs (6-5) got a team-high 15 points from DeandreCameron. Wesley Brown had 11 and Marcus Tillman added 10 for headcoach Chris Jordan.