On Jan. 5 the Panthers traveled to Hotchkiss, Colorado, to take on the North Fork Miners. The Panthers came out cold in the first quarter and went down 13-6 after the first period. The size and physicality of the Miners were difficult for the Panthers to match as they were out-rebounded and gave up lots of points in the paint. The Panthers suffered their worst shooting night of the season and ended up falling to the Miners 54-13. Clay Allred led the Panthers with nine points.
On Jan. 6 the Panthers hosted the Soroco Rams from Oak Creek, Colorado. It was a very closely matched and intense game from the tip. The Panthers once again started cold from the field and ended up going down 8-2 in the first few minutes of the game. The Panthers ended up taking the lid off the basket and continued to play good defense which saw the end of the first quarter scoreboard being 10-9 in favor of the Rams.
The Panthers used their press to put pressure on the Rams for much of the second quarter, and the teams went to halftime with the score 18-17 in favor of the Panthers. Both teams started to heat up on offense in the third quarter and the square remained close with the Panthers holding a small three-point lead going into the final frame 34-31. The fourth quarter saw three Panther starters foul out and the game come down to the final seconds.
In the end the Rams were able to outlast the Panthers and take the contest by a score of 46-43. Leading the way for the Panthers was Marcos Quintana who had his first double-double of the season scoring 11 points and grabbing 14 rebounds and Clay Allred who scored 17 points while getting six steals.
