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By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

MONTEVALLO – The Pelham Panthers swept the season series with the Montevallo Bulldogs after hitting the road and handling their county foes.

Pelham defeated Montevallo 67-39 on Friday, Dec. 6 at Montevallo High School to bounce back from a tight 76-70 loss at Sylacauga the night before, and then the Panthers parlayed that into a 74-49 win over the Marbury Bulldogs on Monday, Dec. 9 at Pelham High School.

In the loss to the Aggies, Kendall Smith dropped 22 points and Marcus Arnold posted 15 points to try and push the Panthers past Sylacauga.

The next night, the offensive production shifted elsewhere as Pelham’s balanced offense shined once again in a winning effort.

Six different Panthers scored in the opening quarter, although Eli Lewis hit a 3-pointer to spark his strong shooting night to come.

In all, Pelham outscored Montevallo 12-7 in the first quarter despite Keiston Ross pacing the Bulldogs offense early with five opening-quarter points.

Then, Lewis took over in the second quarter, scoring nine points in the remaining minutes before halftime to get to double figures on the night. Jayden Robinson added a pair of baskets and Arnold hit a 3-pointer to help the Panthers score 19 points.

That outpaced the Bulldogs even as Dee Cutts scored seven of his team’s 11 points and gave Pelham a 31-18 lead going into halftime.

Trey Pittman helped grow that lead even more in the third quarter as he went 6-for-7 from the free throw line and scored 11 points overall in the quarter.

His efforts led the way for a 24-point period from the Panthers as Egypt Daniel added in five points and six total Pelham players scored in the quarter.

Cutts scored seven points in the third to reach double figures, but Montevallo’s offense couldn’t close the gap and the Panthers extended their lead to 55-40 ahead of the fourth quarter.

Pelham’s offensive pace slowed down in the fourth quarter, which gave the Bulldogs some room to find some offense. In the end though, the Panthers won the quarter yet again and finished off the 28-point victory for Greg Dickinson over his former team.

Lewis led Pelham with 17 points and Pittman finished with 14 points, 12 of which came in the second half. Daniel scored nine points, Robinson posted seven points and Andy Olds contributed six points to the cause.

For Montevallo, Cutts had a game-high 18 points and Keiston Ross earned 10 points.

The Panthers took the momentum from that win into a dominant performance at home against Marbury on Monday, Dec. 9.

Daniel, Arnold and Olds led the way for Pelham early with Daniel scoring seven points in the opening period while Arnold and Olds each picked up four points during that span, Arnold’s coming off two field goals while Olds scored one from the field and two from the charity stripe.

The Panthers’ 20 first-quarter points should have been enough to establish a commanding lead, but the Bulldogs were lights out from deep to start. Marbury hit five 3-pointers in the first quarter to make it a one-possession game going into the second quarter with Pelham leading 20-17.

However, the Panthers defense flipped a switch in the second, surrendering just one 3-pointer and seven total points the rest of the way before halftime.

Pelham then had its own party from long range as Smith, Grayson Childress, Lewis and Pittman each hit a 3-pointer in the second quarter.

Seven different Panthers found the scoresheet in the second as Pelham scored 21 points to extend the lead to 41-24 at the break.

The Panthers’ offensive momentum continued into the third quarter as Pittman scored five points in the third and Daniel added four points. Olds and Marlon Scarborough each knocked down a deep shot to help the Panthers outscore the Bulldogs 18-8 in the quarter.

That extended the hosts’ lead to 59-32 and effectively put the nail in the coffin.

Pelham continued scoring until the end, with Pittman and Olds hitting multiple shots in the fourth quarter. Even though Marbury kept putting up points in the fourth, the visitors couldn’t make up the difference and the Panthers walked away with the 25-point win.

Pittman led Pelham with 14 points and Daniel and Olds each finished with 13 points. Those three double-digit scoring nights were complemented by six points from Childress, five points each from Smith and Scarborough and four points each from Lewis and Arnold.

The Panthers will have a quick turnaround to face the top team in Shelby County, the 11-0 Oak Mountain Eagles, on Tuesday, Dec. 10 at 7:30 p.m. at Pelham High School.