The Panthers still haven’t lost at home.

“There is not one team that could beat us if we keep our focus,” coach Jodie Karsak said to the Panthers in the locker room before the Heights game on Thursday night. “We are unstoppable.”

Derby defeated Wichita Heights 66-52 during the AVCTL/GWAL Challenge game.

The Falcons arrived in Panther Country unbeaten but with some holes in their team.

“Going into tonight’s game, we were missing two players in our starting lineup, but it is no excuse for our performance tonight,” Wichita Heights coach Ken Palmer said.

The Panthers lived up to Karsak’s expectations of dominance with another double-digit win.

But there were some difficult points.

Wichita Heights is a  physical team that also shoots well from the perimeter.

Due to the Falcons’ lack of height, scoring in the paint was a challenge — especially against Derby senior Kennedy Brown, who is 6-foot-6.

“The whole focus of our preparation was to keep the ball closer to the half-court line and away from Kennedy,” Palmer said.

The Panthers used Brown to help trap the Falcons in the paint and prevent them from scoring.

But the Panthers trailed for the second time this season during the first quarter when Heights sophomore Laniah Randle went on a scoring streak.

“I don’t get nervous when we are behind on the scoreboard because no matter what, the other team is going to score and get their points,” sophomore Jaidyn Schomp said.

The Panthers lost junior Heather Mills to an injury, the first to go down on the court this season.

Mills suffered a fractured clavicle during a fight for possession.

Derby still remains undefeated and doesn’t play until Jan. 22 when it travels to Salina South.