A pair of good defensive performances led to the first West Central Activities Conference varsity sweep of the young season for the Panorama Panthers basketball teams Tuesday night. The Panthers took both games against conference newcomer Pleasantville in Panora yesterday, winning the girls game, 57-16, and the boys’ contest, 57-43.

The Panorama girls basketball team had another suffocating defensive performance, registering more steals (18) than points allowed (16). The Panthers scored the first 12 points of the first quarter, the first 11 points of the second quarter, and the first eight points of the third. Senior Bailey Beckman scored 19 of her game-high 22 points between the second and third quarter, tallying seven steals, five rebounds, and four assists. Panorama head girls basketball coach Dan Druivenga said his team’s heading in the right direction. “(It was) probably the most intense game that we’ve played so far and it showed,” Druivenga said, “I think we had a lot more steals and we were in the passing lane. They didn’t have a great point guard that brought the ball up the floor but that was ok we were playing smart and up in the passing lane.”

The win is the third straight to open the season for the Panther girls basketball squad. The Panorama varsity boys basketball team built a 20 point halftime lead and never relinquished it in a 57-43 win. The Panthers held Pleasantville to 18 first-half points, scoring 26 points in the second quarter alone. Senior Gracen Welburg topped Panorama with 14 points and seven rebounds. Sophomore Zach Rizzuti added 13 points and eight rebounds. The Panorama Panthers varsity basketball teams resume West Central Activities Conference play on the road Friday against the Madrid Tigers.