After being in the driver’s seat of a potential KCI Conference Title, the North Platte girls’ basketball team (17-7) has now lost two consecutive games – both of which were against conference opponents.
Ahead of North Platte’s road matchup with Lathrop (12-12) on Feb. 8, the Panthers were the only KCI team who hadn’t lost a conference game yet (4-0). After falling 55-46 to the Mules, North Platte lost 36-29 to East Buchanan (12-11) on Feb. 11.
North Platte senior Gracelynn Hoffman, above right, scored nine points against the Mules as the Panthers KCI Conference record went from 3-0 to 3-2.
The losses put the Panthers in a 4-way tie for first place in the KCI. Mid-Buchanan (14-9), Lathrop, East Buchanan and North Platte all had a 4-2 conference record before the final night of KCI action on Feb. 15.
In North Platte’s first conference loss of the season, it fell behind early on and couldn’t dig itself out of the hole. Lathrop led 18-7 at the end of the first quarter and took a 34-19 halftime lead.
While the Panthers narrowed the deficit to single digits, they weren’t able to complete the comeback. Gracie Ramsey led the way with 11 points and eight rebounds, while Gracelynn Hoffman scored nine points and Karli Guinn ended with eight points.
The East Buchanan game was more competitive from start to finish, but the Panthers struggled to score the basketball. Ramsey was the leading scorer with nine points as the senior also grabbed nine boards.
After the Bulldogs took a 4-point lead after the opening frame, the game was knotted at 20 at the break. North Platte trailed 24-23 at the end of the third quarter and East Buchanan made more shots down the stretch than the Panthers did to secure the 7-point victory.
“We had a tough week scoring the ball,” North Platte head coach Karl Matt said. “The girls are working hard, and I think if we can start to get some shots falling again, we will have a chance to continue the season back on a nice run through districts.”
The Panthers’ final regular season game is on the road against Excelsior Springs (6-14) on Feb. 16. North Platte will have a first-round bye in the Class 2 District 15 Tournament after earning the No. 1 seed.