Sketchy officiating haunts Panthers
Nothing ruins a game more than poor officiating.When you have two good teams in Camden and Lake City fighting for the right to play in the Class 3A lower state finals, a good game is to be expected. When the foul calls clearly favor the home team, then you have to wonder.
Fouls were pretty even in the first half. In the second half, however, the officials started calling midcourt touch fouls against the Panthers while Camden got away with hacks. Lake City coach Willie Thomas could only watch helplessly as the Bulldogs shot free throw after free throw.
There were also three balls that went out of bounds that clearly went off the Bulldogs, yet the Bulldogs retained possession.
That being said, the Panthers couldn't hit the broadside of a barn during the contest. The 3-pointer - a staple of Panther success on its way to a Region 7-3A title - was nonexistent in the loss. Free throw shooting was a bust for Lake City as well.
Camden opened the game with consecutive 3s from Jay Council and never looked back.
Ultimately, Thomas and his team can only look at themselves to answer the question of what went wrong in Camden. If they're lucky, they'll get a second chance to prove themselves next season.
Posted by
on 02/24 at 08:13 PM
