Basketball Recap: Sumter County Takes a Loss

Sumter County was not able to break out of their rough patch on Saturday as the team picked up their third straight defeat. They were five points away from ending the streak, but they lost a 51-46 heartbreaker at the hands of the Tift County Blue Devils. Sadly, that's the second time they've come up short against the Panthers this season, as they also lost their prior matchup 32-30 back in December of 2024.

Tift County was led to victory by Cordell Nelson and JJ Lamar. Nelson went 6 of 9 on his way to 16 points and eight rebounds, while Lamar went 6 for 14 en route to 15 points and five boards. Nelson has been hot recently, having also posted two or more blocks the last three times he's played. Kaden Lawson was another key player, going 5 of 8 en route to 10 points.

Sumter County now has a losing record at 8-9. As for Tift County, their win was their fifth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 14-5.

Sumter County has already played their next match, a 47-42 victory against Columbus on the 27th. As for Tift County, they also didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next game, a 48-46 win against Colquitt County on the 28th.