Capers drop 109-88 decision to Panthers

By Thomas Becker

The Panthers' three-headed monster was back in full force with the return of the country's leading scorer, Tyler Scott.

Captains Scott (35), Brad States (21) and Lorenzo Parker (17) combined for 73 points in a 109-88 win over the Cape Breton University Capers Saturday night at the Chi-Wan Young Sports Centre.

"Our guys feed off our leaders," said head coach Tim Kendrick. "When the leaders are doing what they're supposed to do, everybody buys in."

While pleased with the end result, Scott said the team has only begun to tap into their potential.

"If we stay focused and play how we know we can play, I don't think it will stop anytime soon."

The Panthers came out of the gate strong, shooting 65 per cent from the field in the opening quarter. Scott scored 10 of the team's first 30 points for an early seven-point advantage.

The Capers' defence ramped up in the second, leading to a 7-3 run and cutting the deficit to three. The two teams traded baskets before a Parker three-point play sparked the Panthers' offence.

States added a three-point play of his own after picking off a Capers pass, extending the lead 47-36 with three minutes reaming. But the Capers responded with a three at the buzzer, tying the game at 48.

Kenny Jean-Louis led all scorers at the half with 17 points on 8-of-14 shooting.

After being held scoreless in the second, Scott came out firing in the third, sinking two deep three-pointers, securing a 61-54 advantage.

The Panthers went on another run to extend their lead 74-56, before Cape Breton clawed back, cutting the deficit to 10.  Scott had another monster quarter, scoring 15 points on 5-of-7 shooting.

With seven minutes remaining, Cape Breton narrowed it to a single digit game 87-79. But a couple of Caper miscues led to two fast break dunks by States.

With a fired-up hometown crowd, UPEI pulled away on back-to-back threes by Scott and Parker, extending their lead 99-81, before coming away with the 109-88 win.

With the win, the Panthers improve to 5-0, while the Capers fall to 2-4.

Cape Breton's Jean-Louis (25), Cedric Kasongo (23), Seth Amoah (13) and Daoud Soukary (12) each scored double figures in the loss.

The Panthers hit the road next weekend when they'll face the 3-2 Acadia Axemen.