Senior Sedrick Madison took the pass with less than :11 left on the clock and dropped a shot from outside the paint. The clock read 54-54 with less than :06 left and Coppell took possession. Strong Duncanville defense was enough to save the Panthers season. The extra period was all Panther basketball as Madison, Myles McDougal, Ahmad Caldwell and LA Tech comit Jalen Harris hit from everywhere and gave the Cowboys only seven points ending in a 72-61 victory.

In the fearsome battle between the Duncanville Panthers and the Coppell Cowboys the game proved to be one of the most exciting bi-district matchup in head Coach Cory Chism’s return to Duncanville setting up a second round matchup Friday night against Justin Northwest in Grapevine at 7:30.

“We had many guys step up in big-time situations,” Chism said. “Our defense and guys knocking down shots helped us out big tonight.”

One of those key performances came from junior Dexter Johnson, who had a marvelous shooting performance nabbing 28 points from everywhere on the court. He sank a total of six shots from outside the paint and went 8-8 from the free-throw line.

“My teammates just kept looking for me,” Johnson said. “Coaches gave me the green light and tonight they were falling in”.

Another key performance was of course from Madison who made the two big shots from downtown and the buzzer beater at the end of 1st quarter to cut the lead.

“Coach told me I need to pick my game up,” Madison said. “I’m glad we came out with the win.”

After obtaining a comfortable lead, by causing the Cowboys guards to turnover the basketball and Jalen Harris orchestrated some impressive offense on the other end. The Panthers went 14 of 16 from the free-throw line, with Caldwell, McDougal and Johnson leading the way on an 18-6 run down the stretch in the overtime win.

“We just had to stay disciplined and consistent” Caldwell said. “We have a chance to do something really special with our season.”

The game contained a lot of boo’s from the crowd with controversy calls by the referees. With a collected game high 37 fouls for both teams there was plenty of disappointment from the fans in the game. This game was one that kept the fans on their feet for the majority of the time but kept the players driving for the win as well.

“Our kids handled adversity really well,” assistant Coach Corey Johnson said. “Ahmad’s big man presence really geared our guys on both sides of the court.”

The first half the Panthers turned the ball over with the challenge of beating the Coppel defensive strategy. But Coach Chism made some adjustments after

halftime and the Panthers seemed to find a way to persevere throughout the second half as well as overtime.

“We played our game,” Harris said “We didn’t get rattled and played the game.”