The season tipped off officially for the Gordon-Rushville Mustang Boys Basketball team this past weekend as they opened play with a road contest against Hemingford.
The Bobcats and Mustangs kept it tight to get things going with G-R holding a 24-20 lead heading into the break.
Hemingford would come charging back though, taking the lead into the final quarter, 41-39.
Late in the fourth with only 10 seconds on the clock, G-R was clinging to a 53-52 lead.
A shot was heaved by the Bobcats that missed long but senior Talon Payne was waiting for the rebound and offensive put back. That basket gave the Bobcats a 54-53 lead with only 4 seconds to play.
A final heave and attempt by the Mustangs was unsuccessful, giving the home team a win.
For G-R, sophomore Braylon Holston led the offense with 16 points and 8 rebounds.
He was backed up by sophomore Joey Ziller who scored 11 points and had 7 assists.
Senior Daniel Martins and junior Case Scheenen each chipped in 9 points a piece in the loss.
G-R’s downfall in the contest came at the free throw line where the Mustangs only made 5 of their 19 attempted free throws in the game.
The team had no time to fret over the heartbreak loss as they opened their home schedule with a tough match-up against Ainsworth the next day.
The Mustangs got things going early in this one, led by Martins, as they amassed a 29-16 lead heading into half.
Martins had already collected a double-double in the first half with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
That success would continue for the blue and orange as they kept the pace for a 55-35 win.
Martins led the scoring with 26 points. He also had 16 rebounds and 7 steals, narrowly missing a triple-double.
Holston chipped in with 13 points and 5 rebounds as well.
Scheenen filled the stat lines with 6 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 steals.
The Mustangs final game of the week came at Crawford on Tuesday, December 9. Results from that contest were not available at the time of print and will be posted in the December 17 issue of the SCJS.
Following the game against Crawford, the team will head to Chadron on Friday, December 12 to face the Cardinals. The team will return home on Tuesday, December 16 to face Hyannis.