Late burst spurs Silo Rebels past Bethel

Coming off rough performances on the road, the Silo Rebels returned home last week with solid outings against Class 3A heavyweight Bethel, splitting a pair of games.

The Lady Rebels pushed the seventh-rated visitors before falling 40-30 while the Rebels made a late charge to forge a 5348 victory to close out the pre-Christmas schedule.

Both Silo teams will be in action next in the Kingston New Years Classic starting on Thursday, January 4. The Lady Rebels tangle with Latta at 4:20 with the Rebels battling Broken Bow at 3 p.m.

Girls

Silo’s defensive game plan managed to frustrate Bethel standout Josie McGehee much of the game, but the junior stalwart finished strong with a double-double, notching a gamehigh 16 points and 11 rebounds.

The Lady Rebels trailed only 9-5 after one quarter with Ryleigh Pierce scoring four of those points and were down just 17-11 at intermission.

Bethel pushed the margin to double digits through three stanzas before Silo sophomore Kynleigh Pierce exploded for 13 points in the final frame to rally the hosts.

Coach Jake Jobe’s club narrowed the gap to seven but the Lady Wildcats connected on six of their final eight free throw attempts to seal the victory.

Kynleigh Pierce finished with a season-best 13 points as Kostina Tubby and Ryleigh Pierce added four apiece.

Makayla Clark and Avery Beauchamp both had three points as Cache Atwood chipped in two and Kamrey Hendricks one.

Boys

It was a tale of big flurries in the contest as Silo burst to a 16-4 edge just four minutes into the game with senior Charlie Gardner pumping in nine quick points.

Down 20-12 at the end of the period, Bethel narrowed the margin to 32-27 at halftime and looked to be pulling away at 46-38 late in the third stanza.

That’s when Silo went on the attack, however, as Daxter Thomas scored the final bucket of the third on a floater in the lane and the Rebels yielded only one basket in the fourth, scoring 15 of the game’s final 17 points.

Gardner was pivotal in the charge, notching four steals in the burst while adding eight points. Thomas also chipped in crucial plays down the stretch in helping fuel the comeback.

For the game, Gardner ended with 25 points and six steals while Thomas turned in a season-best 15 points offensively. Hayden Roberts tallied eight and Britton Salsbury tossed in five for Silo.