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Ty Graham led all scorers with 15 while his teammate Pickell had 11 for Reese.  Oakes led All Saints with 13 to go along with Ollie Hull's 9 points. 

The game had its fair share of fouls and whistles.  The Rockets capitalized on the advantage of trips to the line, while they relied heavily on a relentless defense that created few open shots for All Saints. 

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Alma – The Alma Panthers end their three game home stint tonight in conference action against the Bullock Creek Lancers.  This game is set to be filled with tough offense and even tougher defense.  Tonight’s match up could very well be a glimpse of who will be crowned Tri-Valley Central Conference champs as both schools have outstanding basketball teams and are hungry for the title.

Double teaming by the Lancers started early and more of the game was spent picking players up off the floor than actually playing.  As a testament to this rough style, the first foul came before the first points of the game.  Adam Follett made this first shoe and was subsequently fouled on the play and left at the line to shoot.  The Panthers looked like they were in true Panther form as made foul shot was followed by a steal by Follett then a basket by Kyle Lark on a pass from Jake Blake, making the score 0-5 Panthers.  But the Lancers weren’t having any of this as they went on a ten point streak before Alma could even think about getting the ball back.  Get it back they did, but only for one basket as the Lancers took the ball back to score twice more before Alma’s Ray Riley made the final basket of the quarter to put the score at 13-9 Lancers.

The second quarter brought more of the same as both teams tempers increased and the fast pace continued.  Bullock Creek kept up with the scoring as Jordan Dean scored just 10 seconds into the quarter.  But that one score is all they could manage as the big men of Alma turned up the heat.  It seemed that no one could stop Follett or Blake as they went on a rampage with made shots, behind the back dribbling, assists, and rebounds galore.  The Panthers were able to hold the Lancers to seven points in the quarter, while rallying to score 13 points to take the lead at 20-22 going into the half.

The 30 minute break for halftime is designed to cool tempers down but it only increased the intensity for these two teams.  Anyone in the gym could see that there was no love lost between these teams as they eyed each other up when they emerged from the locker room to begin second half warm-ups.  Alma continued their rally as Follett scored ten seconds into the half.  The Creek, however, was not to be held back as Dean made a field goal followed by a three from Ryland Bever putting the Lancers back in the lead by two.  The next two minutes of action were plagued with fouls from both teams.  It wasn’t until Riley scored with four minutes left that normal basketball resumed.  Mike Hicks made a three pointer for Alma followed by a free throw shot by Bullock Creek’s Garrett Yatch, making the score 32-29 Lancers at the end of the third.

Everyone who follows basketball knows that the fourth quarter is where the action is and this game was no different.  The only problem for Lancers fans is that the Panthers were the ones making all the moves.  Luke Kanine started the quarter off with a field goal followed by two made free throws to give the Panthers a one point advantage.  The Lancers answered back with a pair of field goals from Yatch and Korey Mudd.  But it was all Orange and Black as Alma decided to take no mercy.  Completed shots, converted passes, blocked field goals, and an abundance of Lancer fouls, including two intentional fouls, let Alma gain their biggest lead of the night with a score of 36-46.  The Lancers weren’t allowed to score again until Hicks fouled Dean putting him at the line to make both shots with 1:29 left in the fourth.  But these baskets came to late as the damage was already done and the Panthers walked away with a 40-54 victory.