Undefeated and ranked Sidney came to town Friday night to battle Alliance in boy’s basketball action. The home town Bulldogs used a strong second half to defeat the Raiders 65 to 54 in a very exciting ball game. With the victory, the Bulldogs improved to 7 and 3 for the season while Sidney falls to 7 and 1. Alliance used the one-two punch of a pair of guards in getting the victory. Senior point guard Payton Boyer paced the Bulldog offense with 24 points while junior shooting guard Espen Lanik added 22 points. The Raiders won the opener in junior varsity action. In a battle at the Middle School, Sidney won the JV contest 67 to 34.
Red-hot shooting by the guests helped the Red Raiders get off to a solid beginning. Sidney tallied 25 first period points to gain an early lead. Unofficially, the Bulldogs had only 3 defensive rebounds in the first quarter as Alliance fell behind. A hoop by the guests started the contest but a Boyer bucket tied the game at 2. Twelve straight points by the Raiders ensued which made the score 14 to 2 with under 5 minutes remaining the period. Another Boyer goal stopped the run but Sidney responded with 5 consecutive tallies to surge ahead 19 to 4. Alliance followed with an 8 to 0 spree thanks to hoops by Trevor Zurn and Boyer plus 2 Seth Meyring scores as AHS pulled within 7 at 19 to 12. The quarter ended with another Raider run, 6 in a row, and Alliance down 25 to 12.
Two free throws by the visitors started play in the second. Three straight Boyer buckets followed that got the hosts close at 29 to 18. The teams then traded baskets with the Dogs getting points from Jaden Guerra and Boyer. At the 4 minute mark of the second, free throws by Lanik and 3 more points by Boyer helped Alliance stay in striking distance at 39 to 28. The half closed with Lanik sinking 3 free throws and Sidney maintaining their advantage at 39 to 31.
In period #3, the teams swapped scores with the Bulldogs getting goals by Lanik and Boyer. A Lanik trey at the 6 minute mark sliced the Alliance deficit to 5 at 43 to 38. The game’s next 5 points belonged to the Bulldogs. Another 2 pointer by Lanik was followed by a Zurn three that knotted the game at 43. With 3 minutes left in the quarter, a Sidney basket gave the visitors a 2 point lead. Alliance got the ball to Lanik who was fouled. The Bulldog lefty made both shots that tied the game at 45. Sidney came back with another bucket but a buzzer beating three by Lanik gave Alliance a lead at 48 to 47 with one period left to play.
Using the momentum from the Lanik three, the Alliance offense went on a quick run to pad their lead. Six straight tallies by the Dogs helped the hosts increase their lead to 7 at 54 to 47. Scoring for AHS during the spree were Guerra, Meyring and Boyer. Sidney made one last push with the clock showing 6 minutes to play. The Red Raiders ran off 5 consecutive points to pull within 2 at 54 to 52.
A huge three pointer by Lanik followed as the Dogs held off the rally. Up by 5 with 3 minutes left, Guerra was fouled and calmly made both charity shots. Meyring then scored; that put the Bulldogs up by 9 with under 2 minutes to play. Sidney answered with a bucket, but another goal by Lanik kept the Dogs in the lead. The final minute saw turnovers by both squads and 2 free throws by Boyer. Final Alliance 65 Sidney 54
SID 25 14 8 7 54
ALL 12 19 17 17 65
Scoring Boyer 24 Lanik 22 Meyring 8 Guerra 6 Zurn 5
Alliance hosted Pine Bluffs on Saturday.