MOULTRIE — The Colquitt County boys basketball team may have discovered some thing good about itself on Friday.

The Packers proved they could win a close game down the stretch. And they did it against a pretty good team.

Colquitt County saw a lead it had held since early in first quarter dwindle to one point with 39 seconds left in its non-Region 1-AAAAA meeting with East Gadsden High of Havana, Fla., on Friday at the Gladys Espy Gymnasium.

But after taking a timeout with 36 seconds left, the Packers got a basket by Jeremy DeBruce with 28 seconds left and two free throws from James Trimble 14 seconds later to defeat the Jaguars 54-49.

The win enables the Packers to take a 6-3 record and a two-game winning streak into the holiday break.

The Packers held a hot-shooting hand when they defeated Rockdale County 81-72 on Tuesday in the Good Life City Classic at the Albany Civic Center.

But back in front of the home folks — a large number of fans in Jaguars Columbia blue — the Packers were unable to get many of their long range jumpers to fall.

Colquitt had eight 3-pointers — including six by Antwan Tuff — against Rockdale County. They managed just half of that on Friday and had to contend with conversions on just 6-of-17 free throws.

But the Packers got 15 rebounds from James Trimble and some clutch shooting down the stretch to defeat East Gadsden, which brought an 8-2 record to Moultrie.

And, ironically, while the Packers free throw shooting has been lacking of late, Trimble and Orion Ponder both converted a pair of free throws in the final 2:27 to help hold off the Jaguars.

“We were a little flat,” said Packers coach Kirven Davis. “It might have been because of the hype around the game. And they (the Jaguars) are a decent-size team.

“I think we did a good job of holding them off.”

The Packers jumped out to a 16-9 first-quarter lead and built the lead to nine at the half.

But Davis warned his team at intermission that good teams often have a run in them and the Jaguars started theirs after the Packers jumped out 36-20 on a Tuff 3-pointer with 6:02 left in the third quarter.

East Gadsden cut the lead to eight with 4:09 left in the half, but Colquitt responded and got it lead back to 12 early in the fourth quarter.

But the Jaguars refused to give in and finally pulled to within a point on a pair of Earl Thomas baskets, the last of which came with 39 seconds left.

But the Packers kept their composure and held on for the victory.

DeBruce led the Packers with 15 points and Tuff added 12. Trimble had eight points to go along with his 15 rebounds.

Ponder also had eight, Kamari Peterson, filling in for the injured Andrew Wallace, had five. Ronald Wilson had four and Dannie Hunt added a basket.

Thomas was the only Jaguar in double figures and he had 10.

The Packers will be off until Tuesday, Jan. 3, when they travel to Thomasville to meet Thomas County Central. The Region 1-AAAAA portion of the Colquitt County High schedule will begin on Friday, Jan. 6, when the Packers and Lady Packers are back at the Gladys Espy Gymnasium to take on Houston County.