Senior Khalil Newton has been the Brookhaven Panthers’ leading scorer all season, but he knows he’s got to dish it out to his teammates when they’re open.

Newton scored 16 and led the Panthers over visiting Jefferson County Tuesday night, but in the process he found a way to get others involved. “It was a good team effort,” said Newton of the 66-47 win.

Brookhaven Coach Preston Wilson was glad to see his team finish the game as strong as they started. The Panthers, who improved to 15-4 with the win, have had trouble in some games this season staying focused to the end. “Tonight was a good win against a good, physical opponent, and I’m glad we were able to push all the way to the end. If we hope to make it through the district and deep into the playoffs we’ve got to be able to finish games strong,” he said.

The Panthers, ranked No. 4 in The Clarion-Ledger 5A statewide poll, will travel to Pearl River Friday.

In Tuesday night’s win over the Tigers, the BHS Panthers came out from the opening tip and cruised to a 30-20 halftime lead. Jefferson County, now 8-9, battled back in the third quarter, but couldn’t pull closer than five points at 40-35 with 2:24 left in the third. Newton, a southpaw, nailed a three-pointer with 1:26 left in the third to give the momentum back to the Panthers. “That was a big shot,” said Coach Wilson.

Ryyole Brown led Jefferson County with 16 points. Christian Day added 12, Akeem Williams 11, and JaDarrius Harried 8.

Lady Panthers improve to 9-8  with 58-53 win over Jefferson County

Coach Freda Craft says her Brookhaven Lady Panthers have a lot of room for improvement in “every” facet of the game, but she let a smile slip after her squad disposed of Jefferson County in a hard-fought 58-53 win Tuesday night. The BHS girls improved to 9-8 with the win after battling back from a 21-19 halftime deficit.

Junior Jessica Wilson was the spark the Lady Panthers needed and she finished with a team-high 19 points. “It felt good,” said Wilson, who created a lot of points after Jefferson County turnovers with her tough defense.

Fredericka Fairman played in important role for the Lady Panthers with her 14 rebounds.

Jefferson County was led by led by Dionna Jackson’s 23 points.