HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL: Bench sparks Permian to rout of Midland Lee as Panthers clinch 2-6A title

The Permian Panthers didn’t start out Friday looking like a team on the verge of clinching a district championship.

The Panthers missed their first six shots and had most of their nine turnovers in the opening four minutes of their District 2-6A game against Midland Lee, prompting coach Tim Thomas to sub out the entire starting lineup midway through the period with the Rebels leading by two.

Backup Zach McGee hit Permian’s first basket with 3:45 left in the opening period and Johnathan Anaya put the Panthers ahead to stay 37 seconds later in an 80-30 victory at the Permian Fieldhouse.

“You’ve got to have really good guys to back you up,” Thomas said. “Sometimes, you’re sluggish. It’s hard throughout the whole season to come out and just have it right away every ballgame. We didn’t have it that first three or four minutes, so it was great that those kids came in and picked it up.”

McGee finished with game highs of 16 points and seven rebounds as the No. 17 Panthers (27-3 overall, 9-0 2-6A) won their 19th in a row and clinched the outright district championship. Anaya added 12 points off the bench in his first extended action after being promoted to the varsity earlier in the week, and Fabian Flotte scored eight as Permian’s bench accounted for 43 points, including all the scoring in the first quarter as the Panthers took a 15-4 lead.

“It feels going knowing we have a team that can work as one and push through even though we don’t get off to a good start,” McGee said. “We just had to pick it up and come back strong for the second half.”

Thomas reinserted the starters to begin the second quarter and the production picked up immediately. Brother Miller finished with 12 points, Nakavieon White scored 10 and Ozzy Terrazas added nine points and five rebounds.

“I was really proud of the way the kids responded coming back,” Thomas said. “They played very unselfishly, sometimes too unselfish, overpassing the basketball. But we had 26 assists and 33 made field goals. That’s the best passing and sharing the basketball we’ve had.

“I’m really proud of the fact that they’re unselfish and play together. They hustle and they love each other.”

Derrick Wright, Justin Hammond and Kevon Fox each had five assists, while Hammond also had five steals. Miller and Flotte made three steals each as Permian forced the Rebels into 29 turnovers.

Midland Lee (8-23, 1-8) was officially eliminated from playoff contention with the loss. Jaythan Jones came off the bench to lead the Rebels with 13 points, but no other Midland Lee player scored more than five.

Permian scored six points in the first minute after Thomas made the mass substitution and scored the final nine points of the first quarter. The Panthers closed the first half with a 13-4 run to lead 37-17, the outscored the Rebels 25-6 in the third quarter to blow the game open.

Permian took its largest lead at 78-26 on a free throw by Ty’derick Henderson with 3:32 remaining.

Every Permian player scored in the game.