Home Sweet Home. The Brookhaven Panthers finally kicked off their season at home, after a month long road trip due to gym renovations. The Panthers and Lady Panthers hosted the Terry Bulldogs for high basketball action in the grand reopening of Sin Clair Gymnasium.

In the girls game, the Terry Lady Bulldogs quickly overpowered the young Lady Panthers to spoil Ole Brook girls homecoming with a 65-20 win.

In the boys contest, the Panthers high-octane offense was too much for the Bulldogs to handle as Brookhaven cruise to a 74-39 victory.

Brookhaven resumes action Friday night as they host the Lawrence County Cougars for their second straight home game. Varsity action starts at 6 p.m. for the girls, followed by the boys contest.

Sin Claire Gymnasium had several improvements done inside as the Panthers had renovations done. The changes were the locker/dressing rooms were completely redone for both home and visitors and including the officials room. The coaches offices was remodel. The gym had new floors installed in the concession area, the gym floor and in the hallway to the locker rooms. The gym also had a new air condition/heating unit installed.

Terry 65, Brookhaven 20 

The Lady Bulldogs’ defensive pressure quickly overwhelmed the young Lady Panthers in the first quarter as Terry jumped out to an 16-5 lead and never looked back.

In the second quarter, Terry increased their lead with a 13-8 run to take a 29-13 lead into halftime.

In the third frame, the Lady Bulldogs exploded with a 29-5 run to put the contest out of reach and held on for the win in the final quarter.

Jada Henderson was the leading scorer for the Lady Panthers (0-8) with seven points. Cheyenne Motley paced Ole Brook on the boards with four rebounds.

Nyah Tate powered the Lady Bulldogs with a game-high 14 points. Dominique Jackson contributed 12 points.

Brookhaven 74, Terry 39 

The Panthers came out of the gates on fire, as they were very excited to finally be home to finally get the chance to perform in front of their home crowd.

In the opening quarter, the Panthers relied on their quickness and defensive pressure to grab a 18-8 lead. In the second quarter, Ole Brook continue to overpowered the Bulldogs as they went a 22-8 run to take a commanding 40-16 lead into halftime.

In the second half of action, the Panthers (7-1) lightened up on the pressure but still remained in charge with a 34-23 push in the final two frames to preserve the win.

“The guys came out and perform really well in their first game at home,” said BHS coach Preston Wilson. “Our offensive and defensive dedicated the contest and I was please with my guys efforts. Overall, we are very glad to be home.”

Garrick Smith sparked the Panthers scoring onslaught with a game-high 19 points. Damarius Brooks contributed 10 points. Shon Blackwell had nine points. Tavis Moore powered the Panthers on the boards with eight rebounds and scored five points.

Malik Henry directed the Bulldogs offense with 13 points.