By Matt M. Stutz

The Pandora-Gilboa High School boys basketball team went on the road on December 20 to battle BVC rival Leipsic. The Rockets led throughout the middle two quarters but were outscored 18-14 over the final eight minutes of the contest. They lost a close one, 61-58.

The Vikings jumped ahead early and led by two following the opening stanza.  P-G made their big run in the second period outscoring Leipsic 21-13 to take a 32-26 halftime advantage behind Cory Gerten’s twelve first half points. The Rockets would go up by as many as eight points in the third quarter before Leipsic made their move, trimming the P-G lead to just one at 44-43, entering the final quarter.

With 2:45 left in the game the two teams found themselves tied at 54-54.  Leipsic took the lead for good with 1:43 left, 59-58.  The Vikings would go up by three following a pair of free throws with 1.1 seconds left. 

With the ball out of bounds, P-G needed to throw the ball the length of the court and find a way to hit a three-pointer in the final second.  P-G senior Lane Lee was able to catch the long pass from Cam Verhoff just outside the three-point line and get off a shot; while being fouled in the process as the buzzer sounded. With a chance to force overtime, Lee’s first shot bounced around and out, ending the game.

Gerten led the P-G offensive attack with 17 points including three 3-pointers. Verhoff did all his scoring in the second half, canning two three-pointers on his way to 14 points.  Lee and teammate Jack Buell each added 8 points.  Grady Kempf and Matt Maag both provided a spark off the bench: Kempf finished the night with 7 points, swishing a huge 3rd quarter three pointer. Maag closed out the scoring with 4 points while also securing many rebounds and playing defense on Leipsic’s top offensive threat.

Leipsic also won the JV game.

Looking ahead on the schedule, P-G (3-2, 2-1 BVC, 0-0 PCL) will again be on the road tonight, traveling to Upper Scioto Valley for a non-conference tilt.