Christian Dunning cruises toward the basket for two of the 25 points he scored in Saturday night’s Midwinter Classic opener.
By BRUCE A. FASOL
Both halves of Saturday night’s boys varsity basketball game ended the same way in West Frankfort. Both halves were closed out by shots into the same goal from around the half-line. The first shot from Vienna sent the Redbirds into the locker room with their heads down and momentum on the side of the visiting Eagles. The two teams were playing their openers in the annual Mid-Winter basketball tournament, at Max Morris Gym.
The second shot brought Redbird players onto the court and the fans to their feet. With no time remaining, the Redbirds won the game on a Zack Fort heave that found the bottom of the net, giving the ‘Birds an amazing 65-64 come from behind win.Things appeared to be going well for the Redbirds after one period as they held a lead of 11-9. But, a 12-0 run to begin the second quarter buried the home team under a double digit deficit. The run was finally cut by a Christian Dunning free throw. Then, as time expired, Quentin Bent swished a desperation toss from the half-line to give the Eagles a 31-19 halftime lead.
The Redbirds came back with a balanced offense and improved defense in the third quarter to make up 7 points of that deficit. The Redbirds forced turnovers and improved their outside scoring in that quarter. The fourth quarter saw the Redbirds draw within a single point on multiple occasions.
West Frankfort Redbird Zach Fort takes a last-second 3-point shot for the win against the Vienna Eagles on Saturday night.
Still, with 3.1 seconds remaining it appeared that Vienna would steal a win in their first ever Mid-Winter game. Zack Fort had other ideas. Fort took the ball in the back court, drove thru the circle and let fly with a prayer toward the north basket. It found its mark as the crowd erupted and players engulfed Fort at mid-court. Having not led since the early moments of the game and the first quarters end, the Redbirds had the lead on the final scoreboard- when it counted most. A smiling Dan Dewerff shook hands with Vienna Coach Cory Waters after the game with a look of both elation and relief.
Scoring for the Redbirds: Christian Dunning had 25 points for the Redbirds, 16 unofficial rebounds and near flawless free throw shooting down the stretch in one of the sophomore’s best games this season. Other scorers: Fort 11,Koehl 8, Keller 8, Maller 2, Sisk 2, and Williams 2.
Vienna was led by Quentin Bent with 27 for game high honors, in a losing cause.
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