By MICHAEL BOYLAN
Sports Editor

Unless you were there, you wouldn't believe it.

After winning their first official games of the season against Salem Friday, the Starr's Mill Panthers traveled to McIntosh High School Saturday night, adding fuel to the growing rivalries between the boys and girls basketball teams.

Both games went into overtime and both teams had chances to escape with the win, but the Chiefs and Lady Chiefs came out on top.

The game between the Lady Chiefs and the Lady Panthers began with McIntosh jumping out to an early lead of 9-3 at the end of the first quarter. Both teams were rebounding great, they were just having trouble scoring. “We were content to stay outside McIntosh's zone and take outside shots,” said Lady Panthers Coach Teresa Hobbs. “That's not really our strength.”

Starr's Mill shot two of 25 from the floor in the first half and McIntosh went into the half with a 15-7 lead. The two teams improved on their problems in the second half and Starr's Mill battled back, shooting 13 of 25 from the second half. With 30 seconds left in the game, it was tied 31-31.

That was the way regulation ended, leading the two teams into the first of many overtimes on the night. The foul line was a blessing for the Lady Chiefs, who shot 17 of 25 from the line, and a burden for the Lady Panthers, who shot four of 21 from the line.

“That was probably the best game we played defensively in three years,” said McIntosh's Coach Steve Kidd. “We didn't allow them to score on the inside, we did well on the boards and we hit the foul shots when we needed to.”

The Lady Chiefs struck first in overtime with a lay up by Jessi Prahl. Prahl was the Lady Chiefs' leading scorer, netting 13 points and pulling down 13 rebounds. Both teams made it to the foul line on their next possessions and missed both shots.

Britte Hardy made her next two foul shots, but Starr's Mill struck back with two quick baskets. McIntosh's Erin Fisher nailed a jumper and two jump shots on their next possession to give the Lady Chiefs a 39-35 lead. Starr's Mill hit one of their next two foul shots and Whitney Wallis of the Lady Chiefs connected on both of her foul shots with 13 seconds left, sealing the 41-36 victory.

Then the evening got intense. The Panthers came out looking crisp. They moved the ball well, took high percentage shots and built a 17-12 lead at the end of the first quarter. A minute and a half later their lead was 10; a minute and a half later McIntosh had cut it back to 5.

The game was a constant struggle for momentum and the first half was only a small taste of what was to come. Starr's Mill led 34-30 at the half. The Panthers held the lead for a majority of the third quarter but with a minute to go McIntosh seized the lead. It went back and forth for the duration of the quarter and McIntosh came out with a 44-43 lead.

Two things happened to Starr's Mill in the second half: their shots were not falling in due to poor shot selection and bad luck, and the defense for McIntosh picked up.

The fourth quarter was the most even of the game, with both teams putting a lot of defensive pressure on each other. With just under five minutes to go, Starr's Mill took a 50-46 lead off two quick baskets from Dane Davenport and Brandon Alexander. McIntosh rallied back and with six seconds left the score was tied 52-52. Alexander got a chance to win it all with two foul shots but missed them both.

The Chiefs came out charged up, getting a huge boost from two three pointers from Josh Burr. With a minute left, the Panthers trailed 58-55. Alexander hit a three pointer to tie the game and then tipped in a missed foul shot to give the Panthers a 60-59 lead with 23 seconds to go. The Chiefs nailed one of two foul shots and sent the game to double overtime.

Starr's Mill surged to the lead early in the double overtime on the strength of foul shooting. McIntosh hit two more three pointers, including another one from Burr, who had six three pointers in the game. The last three pointer from Burr sent the game into a triple overtime.

The triple overtime had several lead changes. McIntosh began it with three points off foul shots. Starr's Mill rallied back and took a 75-72 lead after an Alexander lay up. McIntosh scored five straight points, including three from the line, to take a 77-75 lead.

With time running out, it was Alexander who sent the game into yet another overtime.

McIntosh struck early and built an 82-80 lead with just under two minutes to go. Rico Blackmon stepped up for the Chiefs making huge defensive stops and nailing a critical basket, giving his a team a four-point lead with 45 seconds left. Boga hit another quick basket for the Chiefs and they never looked back, winning 90-84.

All four teams played with a lot of spirit and the next time these two teams meet, the competition will likely be more fierce.

Starr's Mill will host Jonesboro Tuesday, Eagle's Landing Friday and Fayette County Saturday. McIntosh will travel to Newnan Tuesday evening.

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