JACKSON – The Brookhaven Panthers moved one step closer to claiming the Region 6-5A Tournament title with a hard-fought 63-58 victory over the Pearl River Central Blue Devils Monday night, in the Wingfield High gym. Lazorian McNulty’s team-high 19 points led 3 Ole Brook players in double figures.

“We played extremely hard on defense to secure the win,” said Brookhaven head coach Preston Wilson. “Lazorian (McNulty) made 9 of 10 free throws and 5 of 7 from the floor to help us secure the victory.”

With the win, the No. 1-seeded Panthers improve to 21-5 overall and have assured themselves of at least 2 more games this season. They will await the Wingfield/Natchez winner Friday night in the boys’ championship game at 7:30 p.m., and a spot in the opening round of the South State 5A playoffs.

In other games, the Natchez girls defeated Pearl River Central 48-23. The Lady Bulldogs get the Wingfield/Brookhaven winner Friday night 48-23 in the girls’ finals at 6.

Following McNulty with 14 points and 8 rebounds was Khalil Newton. Fred Trevillion tossed in 12 points. Darrian Wilson grabbed 6 rebounds, while McNulty had 4 steals. Shon Blackwell and Shaquan Richardson dished out 4 and 3 assists respectively.

Brookhaven shot 42 percent from the floor, but were a dismal 0-for-11 from beyond the 3-point arc. The Panthers were 17-of-30 (57 percent) from the charity stripe, while committing 23 turnovers,

“Tough night from the perimeter for us,” added Wilson. “We could not hit a shot outside the paint.”

Wilson’s ballclub led 8-7 entering the second quarter and held a 19-16 advantage at the start of the second half. The Panthers carried a slim 40-35 cushion into the final 8 minutes.