Basketball Recap: Jal Comes Up Short

After flying high against Tatum last Tuesday, Jal came back down to earth. The Jal Panthers took a 73-63 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Lovington Wildcats on Thursday.

Lovington's win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Jojo Perez, who went 8 for 11 on his way to 21 points in addition to five assists and three steals. Those 21 points gave Perez a new career-high. Kayle Covington was another key player, dropping a double-double on 18 points and 14 boards.

Jal's defeat dropped their record down to 8-8. As for Lovington, the victory made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 13-7.

A feisty cat fight is on tap when the Jal Panthers duke it out with the Eunice Cardinals at 7:30 p.m. on Monday. One thing working in Jal's favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last three matches. As for Lovington, they will square off against Artesia at 7:00 p.m. on January 31st. Lovington has been getting the ball to fall more lately as they've increased their point totals each of their last three games.