RICHLAND–It was nip and tuck for the first three quarters against Liberty Christian, but the Pirates hung on thanks to a nine-point spurt by Cesar Morfin in the third quarter, finishing with a 51-46 win over the Patriots here Thursday, Dec. 21. Pomeroy clobbered St. John-Endicott/LaCrosse 75-19 at home Dec. 19.

The Bucs visit Waitsburg Saturday before starting the new year off at Genessee Jan. 4.

Pomeroy and Liberty finished the first eight minutes 11-11, then the Pirates bumped to a slim 22-19 lead at half. Morfin's three trey burst late in the third quarter may have been the deciding factor in Pomeroy's win, giving the Pirates a 21-15 advantage in the third quarter. Liberty outscored the Bucs 12-8 in the final period.

"We were able to gut out a road win on a night we didn't play real well," said Head Coach Chris Wolf. "We should learn a lot from this game about end-of-game situations.

"Morfin came off the bench and hit three big threes in the last two minutes of the third quarter to help us weather a run by Liberty Christian," Wolf said.

Ollie Severs scored a game-high 18, plus swabbed the glass with 12 rebounds. Jett Slusser had eight points, five rebounds, six assists and three steals.

Wolf said the offense was rushed and missed too many uncontested shots. "Our defense was great in the first half, and parts of the second half," he said.

The Pirates cruised to a 75-19 win over the SJEL Eagles.

"We got off to another fast start tonight, scoring 51 first-half points," Wolf said.

Wolf praised Slusser for pushing the game's pace and finding open teammates for easy baskets. Severs and Trace Roberts again contributed another great effort to the team, Wolf said. "They continue to be great leaders and play hard every game and set the tone for us offensively and defensively," he said.

Slusser scored 18, made five rebounds, six assists and swiped four. Severs and Roberts both scored 11 and Roberts snagged seven rebounds. Kyzer Herres kicked in 10 points and three steals.

Pomeroy 51, Liberty Christian 46 (12-21)

Pom 11 11 21 8-51

LC 11 8 15 12-46

Pomeroy (51) Reisinger 1 0-0 2, McKeirnan 1 0-2 2, Slusser 2 4-6 8, Herres 3 0-0 6, Morfin 3 0-0 9, Ledgerwood 0 0-0 0, Schmidt 0 0-0 0, Severs 7 4-7 18, Roberts 3 0-0 6 Totals 20 8-15 51

Liberty Christian (46) Kumsi 0 0-0 0, Idler 0 1-2 1, Hoey 1 0-0 3, Hauk 3 1-4 8, Williamson 2 1-4 5, Cowan 1 0-0 3, Hofiaboam 4 1-2 11, Grover 3 1-1 7, Cole 4 0-1 8, Totals 18 5-16 46

Three-point goals: Pomeroy-Morfin 3. Liberty Christian-Hoey, Hauk, Cowan, Hofiaboam 2

Pomeroy 75, SJEL 19 (12-19)

Pom 26 25 13 11-75

SJEL 6 5 5 3-19

Pomeroy (75) Reisinger 1 1-2 3, Ott 2 0-0 6, Mckeirnan 2 0-0 4, Slusser 7 0-0 18, Herres 4 2-3 10, Morfin 2 0-0 5, Ledgerwood 2 0-0 5, Schmidt 1 0-0 2, Severs 5 0-0 11, Slaybaugh 0 0-0 0, Roberts 5 1-1 11, VanVogt 0 0-0 0. Totals 32 4-6 75. 

SJEL (19) Repp 0 0-0 0, Brown 1 1-2 3, Thomas 3 0-0 6, Fleming 0 0-0 0, Harder 0 0-0 0, B. Johnson 1 0-0 3, D. Johnson 0 0-0 0, DeFord 2 1-2 7, Hunt 0 0-0 0. Totals 7 2-4 19. 

Three-point goals: SJEL-B. Johnson, DeFord 2. Pomeroy-Ott 2, Slusser 4, Morfin, Ledgerwood, Severs.