Gibraltar boys head basketball coach Justin Burress has said previously he’s never had so many players willing to take important shots. This proved to be a deciding factor in Friday’s game, as three-pointers from Ryan Murphy, Spencer Krause, and Trevor Reinhardt erased a 5-point deficit in the closing minutes to defeat the Sevastopol Pioneers 71-69. The two teams played close throughout, with neither team able to pick up much of a lead before seeing it immediately erased. A 1-point game at the half, the second half saw a sense of urgency rise in both coaches as both teams applied pressure at both ends of the floor. Sevastopol was able to get one final shot off, but the three-quarter court attempt got sailed into the netting in the ceiling and fell around the three-point line to seal the game for Gibraltar. Now sitting at 4-2 in the Packerland Conference, Burress looked forward to the Vikings’ next game against conference-unbeaten Southern Door. He said the Eagles will attempt to spread the floor and speed up the tempo.

Reinhardt led the way in scoring for the Vikings on Friday, picking up 16 points. Murphy, Krause, and Evan Henry each reached 13 points as well. The Pioneers were led by their junior guards, as Brent Haberli picked up 25 points to lead all scorers. Robby Pollman added 22 points of his own.