The Pioneer boys’ basketball team used a big third quarter to knock off city rival Huron 61-55 on Wednesday night in an SEC Red matchup of two elite teams.
Pioneer led 15-13 after the first quarter but fell behind 29-26 at halftime. The Pioneers outscored the host River Rats 17-7 in the third quarter to take a 43-36 lead. Pioneer converted on 10 free throws in the fourth quarter to hold off a Huron comeback. The River Rats outscored Pioneer 19-18 in the final quarter but couldn’t make up the difference.
“I’m incredibly proud of our guys,” said Pioneer Coach Rich Marion. “We didn’t play perfect, particularly down the stretch, but our effort and toughness was the best it’s been all year. I also thought it was huge we were ready to pull the trigger when we had open threes. Everyone that stepped up and contributed. It was a great team win.”
Marion liked what he saw from Nathan Freisthler, who scored 24 points including 12 in the fourth quarter. “Nate had his best practice of the year, and responded with his best game,” Marion said. “Not only did he have 24 points but also had close to 10 boards.”
Tyler Mutinda finished with 13 points, Nelson Sompa had three triples and 10 points, Micah Powell knocked down two triples and scored six and Jordan Harrison had five points for Pioneer.
Only three players scored for Huron. Macari Moore had a monster game for the River Rats. The junior guard scored 15 points in the first half, five in the third quarter and 15 in the fourth quarter to finish with a game-high 35 points. Senior Jackson Keefer scored 12 of his 14 points in the first half for Huron. Senior Justin Latham had six points.
