There's no place like home for the Murphy Panthers, who bounced back after a tough loss on the road on Tuesday. They enjoyed a cozy 55-40 win over Rain on Thursday. Given Murphy's advantage in MaxPreps' Alabama basketball rankings (they are ranked 50th, while Rain is ranked 244th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Murphy's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Deangelon Johnson led the charge by dropping a double-double on 13 points and 11 rebounds. The matchup was Johnson's third in a row with at least ten points. Another player making a difference was Bryan Jackson, who scored 9 points along with 7 rebounds.
Murphy has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won six of their last seven matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 8-3 record this season. As for Rain, they are on a four-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 4-5.
Both teams are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Murphy won't have much time to rest: their next match is against LeFlore at 7:30 p.m. on December 8th. LeFlore has been getting the ball to fall more lately as they've increased their point totals each of their last three games. As for Rain, they will be playing in front of their home fans against Orange Beach at 6:30 p.m. on Monday.
