The Gibraltar Vikings very nearly matched their scoring average in the first half as they broke a nine-game losing streak on Thursday night, beating Sevastopol 66-30.
The Vikings pestered the Pioneers defensively as they allowed only six field goals in the first half, three of which were made by Lucas Delsart. They took advantage of turnovers and long rebounds to set up their offense, allowing Braden Sitte to drive into the lane and for Aaron Brey, Liam Lindenberg, and Marshall Maltby to knock down three-pointers.
Sitte and Lindenberg reached double figures in the first half as the Vikings darted to a 40-15 lead at the break. Going into the game, the Vikings had averaged 46.2 ppg.
The Pioneers kept things more under control in the second half, but turnovers set up two slam dunks by Sitte and allowed the Vikings to sink another four three-pointers. Damian Lardinois and Chase Haberli were able to come onto the court in relief and contribute. Delsart led the way with 11 points, but Lardinois added six, and Haberli chipped in four points in the loss.
Despite doing it in different ways, Sitte and Lindenberg each scored 20 points in the Vikings' first win of 2024. Maltby and Will Lecy each scored six points.
The Vikings will play on Saturday at St. Lawrence Seminary on Saturday and on Tuesday at Southern Door. The Southern Door game that will be carried on 105.1 The GOAT at 7:15 p.m., with the pregame show followed by the tip-off at 7:30 p.m.
The Pioneers are back in action on Saturday when they play Wabeno-Laona at Oshkosh Arena. That game is part of a triple-header of basketball, including a girls' basketball matchup between the two schools and the Wisconsin Herd.
