Panthers have 'no regrets'

The Panther Den was the place to be on Thursday night as the Saratoga Panthers hosted the Encampment Tigers for their home opener of the season. Saratoga and Encampment both went into the game with zero losses as conference play began, but ultimately one would have to win. Unfortunately for the Panthers, Encampment would depart the hardwood with a victory over Saratoga.

In addition to hosting the Tigers, the Saratoga boys hit the road where they played the 4A Star Valley Braves junior varsity (JV) team at the Kemmerer Fossil Classic Tournament on Friday.

Panthers vs. Tigers

It was a rough opening for conference play for Saratoga on Thursday night. While they had the opportunity to shake off the winter break rust the weekend before, the Tigers didn't hesitate to secure a lead against Saratoga. Following that early lead, the rest of the game became a matter of the Panthers working to try and close the gap. This included a 3-point shot from senior Logan Seahorn.

Despite the rough start in the 1st quarter, Saratoga worked to try and overcome the gap throughout the 2nd quarter. Senior Menphis Smith, with surgical precision, would sink the first two of his five 3-pointers during those eight minutes before the half.

"We came out pretty flat and Encampment wasn't and they jumped out to a big lead and we fought back and kept fighting," said Head Coach Jason Williams. "I'm just really proud of them for that."

As the game went into half-time, the Panthers trailed Encampment by 9 points with a score of 27-36. Coming into the 2nd half, Saratoga appeared determined to not only get back into the game, but try and push ahead of the Tigers. Smith would fire off three more 3-pointers, two of them, seemingly, one right after another to get Saratoga back into the game. Another 3-pointer from Teegan Love would keep the Panthers fighting.

With junior Gavin Bartlett as point guard, Williams would also put the Bartlett twins, Grant and Grady, on the hardwood. The energy of the three Bartletts, for the short time it was on the court, appeared to give Saratoga a boost. In the 4th quarter, Love would secure another 3-pointer and Kelton Johnson would also join the 3-pointer club.

Despite the successful long distance shots from the Panthers, however, they would not be able to overcome the Tigers' lead. The final score was 61-70.

"Our theme this year has been 'no regrets' and that's what I told them," Williams said. "I said, 'None of you guys have anything to regret. You gave every bit of effort that you could out there and that's all I'm ever going to ask of you guys. They never gave up and had a chance ... we were right there with the No. 1 team in the state."

Love would lead the team against Encampment with 20 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists. Smith followed with 15 points (all five of them 3-pointers) and 3 rebounds. Gavin Bartlett scored 9 points against the Tigers and had 6 rebounds and 4 assists while Noah Rimmer scored 7 points and had 11 rebounds.

Panthers vs. Braves

Following the conference loss to Encampment, Saratoga hit the road to compete in the Fossil Classic. While in Kemmerer, they would get a win against the Star Valley JV.

"Kemmerer was a good chance for us to wake up after a tough, emotional game, get on the bus and go play and early game," Williams said. "I was happy that the boys came out with energy and played hard. It was very good for us to play against a physical 4A team, even if it was only their sophomores."

Love would, again, lead the team with 20 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists. Rimmer followed with 15 points and 8 rebounds, Logan Seahorn scored 9 points and had 3 assists and 4 steals and Bartlett scored 9 points and had 6 assists and 3 steals.

Following their 1-1 weekend, the Saratoga Panthers are now 8-1 for the season and 0-1 in conference play. This week they will hit the road again as they head to Walden to face the North Park Wildcats. Tip-off against North Park will begin at 4 p.m. on January 17.