GIRLS = Nemaha Central 52, Holton 43

The game turned out to be a tale of two halves, however Nemaha Central was never really in danger of losing after breaking an early 10-10 tie by scoring 20 straight points. The Thunder finished a 16-2 second quarter and had the biggest lead of the game 37-12 at halftime. However, Holton would come back to win the second half 31-15 including a 14-1 fourth quarter to close the gap to single digits in the end with both teams playing starters until the final whistle.

Holton didn't make a field goal in the second quarter and Nemaha didn't make a shot in the fourth frame besides going 1 of 7 from the foul line to finish 50 percent on the night at the stripe.  Good defense was a big part of the night with both teams also struggling to handle pressure and take care of the ball at times with each team having more than 16 total turnovers. 

Nemaha Central (3-0) had great balance on offense, but was aided but Elli Rusche and Cali Honeymon who both came of the bench in the first half and combined to make 16 points while knocking down four of the five Thunder treys in the first half. Ella Larkin led the way with 12 points while Addy Holthaus had 10 and Regan Gerety chipped in eight points. 

Holton (1-2) only made one triple on the night and was led by Lindsey Wisdom with 15 points while Brooke Willcott had a varsity career high of 11. Brooke Flewelling and Tiara Dodd both had 6 points. 

BOYS = Holton 61, Nemaha Central 43

 Tyson Snyder scored the first five points and Holton (2-1) never trailed in the boys game, however a 30-19 halftime lead turned into a tight contest entering the fourth quarter with Nemaha Central within 40-37. The Wildcats closed the final eight minutes with a 21-6 burst including nine points from Matt Lierz to win their home opener. 

Synder finished with 22 points while Lierz had 13 and that senior duo has now scored a total of 124 points combined in the first three games (41 points per game) this season. Kobe Black added eight points and took two more charges to push his total to six taken this season while Ashton Schrick added six points and the Wildcats had nine players contribute to their scoring total. 

Gavin Cain scored 18 points to lead Nemaha Central (1-2) while Abe Hilbert added 10 and Wade Leonard and Carter Rottinghaus both chipped in 5 points. The Thunder made just three treys and finished with 16 turnovers. 

Nemaha Central teams will play at Hiawatha on Tuesday while Holton host Royal Valley to continue Big 7 League play.