Helena gets past rival Pelham with defensive effort for first area victory

Published 7:20 pm Friday, January 10, 2025

By Andrew Simonson

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By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

HELENA – Points were at a premium when the Helena Huskies and Pelham Panthers renewed their longstanding, heated rivalry on Thursday, Jan. 9, but in the end, it was the Huskies who outlasted their area foe.

Helena defeated Pelham 39-32 on Thursday at Helena High School after the game was rescheduled from Friday, Jan. 10 due to a snowstorm.

Both teams had to rely on their shots from the free throw line in the early going in a tightly fought battle to grab hold of the lead in a crucial area contest. In fact, the Huskies and Panthers combined for just four field goals in the opening two quarters.

Pelham was slightly more efficient from the free throw line, going 5-for-6 versus Helena’s 4-for-8 clip, but Denton McDonald’s 3-pointer proved crucial as it lifted the Huskies to a 7-5 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Pelham started finding some success from the field with a 3-pointer from Kendall Smith and a field goal from Sam Tolbert. Helena used free throws from Joseph King and Tyler Anderson to keep pace and remain in front but only with a 12-11 lead at halftime.

The Huskies came out of the locker room strong and played like they had flipped a switch to the next gear on both ends of the court.

Helena’s already tight defense only intensified and surrendered just three points in the entire third quarter. The team took advantage of that on the offensive side as Nate Ferguson scored his first five points and of the night and King added on five to his total as well.

The Huskies outscored the Panthers by 10 to go into the fourth quarter with a more comfortable 25-14 lead.

However, Pelham surged back on offense and threatened to steal the game away late.

After scoring just 14 points in the first three quarters combined, the Panthers dropped 18 points in the fourth. The team had a strong performance from deep as Tolbert, Eli Lewis and Jordan Winson each knocked down a 3-pointer while going 6-for-11 from the free throw line.

Helena responded with free throws of its own along with multiple baskets from Kevin Pinkard, who scored his first seven points of the game in the fourth quarter to seal the seven-point win.

King, Pinkard and Ferguson all tied for the Huskies team high with seven points each. Torrey Ward and Denton McDonald each scored six points in the victory.

As for Pelham, Tolbert led the way with 12 points. Lewis scored seven points and Smith finished with five points.

The Huskies are now 11-8 on the season and 1-2 in area play. They will start the back half of area play on Tuesday, Jan. 14 at 7 p.m. at home against the Chelsea Hornets.

Pelham dropped to 10-13 and 1-2 in area play with the loss. The Panthers will look to regain traction in the area on Tuesday, Jan. 14 at 7:30 p.m. at home against the Spain Park Jaguars.

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