This photo gallery is sponsored by Midwest Heating & Cooling.
Centralia and Mexico are both familiar with close games down to the wire. After the Panthers lost 58-57 earlier this week to Bowling Green, they held on to beat Mexico 46-43 on Friday at home. Mexico (11-4) defeated Fulton 56-49 in overtime earlier this week but couldn't hang on to a 35-31 lead going into the third quarter. Centralia (7-6) shot 13 free throws in the fourth quarter to have a late advantage while James Matthews nailed a 3-pointer to decrease Mexico's deficit to 45-43. Clayton Moore led Centralia off the bench with 13 points, Anthony Ford finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds, and Ethan Ross had eight points and five rebounds. Charlie Fisher led Mexico with 14 points, Kaden Benne added nine points on three 3-pointers off the bench and Matthews and Brady Thoenen each had six points.
Mexico hosts Macon (2-6) at 8 p.m. Friday while Centralia plays at Higbee (10-4) at 6 p.m. Wednesday.
Look for the full stories in the Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, edition of the Mexico Ledger.
To purchase photo reprints, call the Mexico Ledger office at 573-581-1111.
