Pinckneyville rallied from a seven-point fourth quarter deficit to edge Sparta 59-57 Tuesday night in a key SIRR Mississippi Division boys basketball matchup.

Down 51-44 with 4:22 to play in the game, the Panthers went on a 10-0 run to grab a 54-51 lead.

Sparta’s Maurice Austin nailed a three-pointer from the top of the key to tie the game up at 54-54 with 18 seconds left in the contest, but a traditional three-point play from Kyle Lamb just five seconds later gave the lead back to Pinckneyville for good.

Sparta had a chance to tie the game on its next possession as Austin attempted another three-point shot. It appeared that there was contact on the shot, but no foul was called and Pinckneyville came down with the rebound.

Shay Kellerman sank the next two free throws to ice the win with 4.4 seconds left. Jordan Thompson drained a three-pointer as time ran out to get to the final score of 59-57.

With the win, Pinckneyville remained perfect in conference play, while the loss was Sparta’s second in the division.

The game turned out to be a battle right from the start as the two teams combined for seven lead changes and seven ties in the first half.

Both teams scored 13 points in the opening quarter as Jake Bathon led the early Pinckneyville attack with seven points.

For Sparta, Dartanus White scored four points in the first quarter, while London Oliver came off the bench to also score four points.

The Bulldogs finished off the second quarter with a 4-0 run to take a 29-25 halftime lead. Wes Kiner led the Dawgs with six points in the frame, while Austin added four points.

For Pinckneyville, Kellerman tossed in five points, while Bathon added four.

White torched the Pinckneyville defense for eight points in the third quarter as Sparta outscored the Panthers 13-12 for a 42-37 lead heading in to the fourth.

Lamb tossed in seven points for Pinckneyville in the third to keep his team close.

After three points from White and then back-to-back three-pointers from White and Thompson, the Bulldogs increased their advantage to 51-44 with 4:22 left in the game.

Pinckneyville responded with a 10-0 scoring run that was highlighted by three baskets from Kellerman and five points from Bathon.

Bathon finished with a game high 21 points, while Kellerman had 18 and Lamb tossed in 13.

White led Sparta with 15 points before fouling out in the fourth quarter, while Austin had 10 in the loss.