BY JIM MISUNAS jmisunas@gbtribune.com SALINA — Great Bend's boys basketball team tried everything it could to avoid a fourth consecutive setback against Salina South. Panther Daxton Minton delivered a clutch rebound basket with 4.2 seconds left on the clock for a 59-59 tie after Cooper Ohnmacht and Jaxon Wondra missed late-game attempts. During a timeout, officials adjusted the Cougars' time to 5.3 seconds on their final possession, a rare occurrence in high school basketball. Salina South coach Jason Hooper was granted a timeout one-10th of a second after Minton's field goal that showed 5.4 seconds on video replay. Salina South's Jaxon Myers was then gifted the game-winning field goal on a shot after the clock struck zero for a 61-59 overtime victory over the hard-luck Panthers Tuesday. "It's a tough loss. It stinks because the ball was in his hands," said Great Bend basketball coach Kyle Kriegh. Kriegh's dream season has transformed into a 4-4 nightmare with all-stater Ian Premer (23 ppg) sidelined indefinitely with an injury. However, the Panthers battled with heart and intensity against a talented Cougar lineup. Standout Jacob Hall was sidelined with two quick fouls. Minton's minutes were limited after he sprained an ankle when a South defender cut off his landing zone on a quarter-ending 3-point attempt on an apparent foul the officials didn't see. Hall scored 19 points, 17 after halftime and Alec Premer added a career high 14 points. The Panthers continue to struggle from the free throw line with 13 of 27 shooting. Newcomer Vaughn Price will become a home favorite after debuting with a 5-point effort from being eligible as a transfer from Lawence. "Alec played well, and he drew a late-game charging foul," Kriegh said. South's Gavin DeVoe scored 17 points and Myers added 13 points. The Cougars had the Panthers on the ropes up 41-36. But the Panthers shockingly used a 13-3 scoring run for a 49-44 lead. Hall scored six points, keyed by a 3-pointer. Minton's steal and assist to Hall were key plays. Tavon Stroup fed an assist to Premer. The Panthers misfired on their final three regulation tries with two turnovers and two missed free throws. Myers converted two free throws for a 50-50 tie for overtime. Momentum in overtime swung back and forth with each earning a pair of leads. Great Bend 10 17 9 14 9 — 59 Salina South 9 15 13 13 11 — 61 GREAT BEND (4-4)—Hall 6-15 (2-5) 5-7 19, Alec Premer 5-10 (1-2) 3-7 14, Ohnmacht 3-9 (0-1) 3-9 9, Price 2-2 (1-1) 5, Wondra 2-3 0-2 4, Minton 2-5 (0-1) 0-0 4, Stroup 1-3 2-2 4; Totals 21-47 (4-10) 13-27 59 SALINA SOUTH (7-2)—DeVoe 7-12 3-4 17, Myers 4-11 3-6 11, Henley 4-6 (0-2) 2-2 10, Wilcox 3-6 (1-3) 0-2 7, Webb 2-5 (0-2) 1-2 5, Walker 2-7 (1-5) 0-0 5, Augustine 1-3 0-0 2, Cheeks 0-0 1-2 1; Breeden 1-2 (1-1) 0-0 3; Totals 24-53 (3-13) 10-18 61 SALINA SOUTH GIRLS 47, PANTHERS 18 — Down 34 points facing a running clock, Great Bend's girls got Salina South coach Justin Ebert worried with the opening basket of the fourth basket. The Panthers achieved a rare bonus in-game victory by outscoring the Cougars (and their starters) 7-2 in the fourth period. It's impossible to imagine Great Bend (2-6) struggling any worse that a combined first and third quarters. The Panthers missed 18 consecutive field goals with 13 turnovers, delivering two free throws by Stevie Mayers while getting outscored 30-2. The Panthers scored two points on 32 offensive possessions. "It was one of those first-games back trying to get the rust off," said Panther coach Jade Winter. "That doesn't make for very good offense and doesn't allow us an offensive flow. We kept telling the players to keep shooting." Tying with four points were Baze Hogan, Alyssa McCauley and Stevie Myers. The Panthers converted 7 of 42 field goals (17%). South's leading scorer Paityn Fritz scored 12 points and Brook Jordan added 10 points. The Cougars converted six 3-pointers to outscore the Panthers 18-3 from long range. "We challenged our posts to be aggressive defensively against Fritz," Winter said. Great Bend 2 9 0 7 — 18 Salina South 12 15 18 2 — 47 GREAT BEND (2-6)—Hogan 2-4 0-0 4; McCauley 2-11 (0-6) 0-0 4; Stevie Myers 1-4 2-4 4; Alex Mayers 1-6 (0-1) 1-2 3; Meredith Mazouc 1-4 (1-2) 0-0 3; Prendergast 0-5 0-0 0; Ringo 0-3 0-0 0; Katherine Mazouch 0-5 (0-1) 0-0 0; Totals 7-42 (1-10) 3-6 18 SALINA SOUTH (7-2)—Fritz 5-10 (0-2) 2-2 12; Jordan 4-7 (2-4) 0-0 10; Crow 2-4 (1-2) 1-1 8; Barth 0-4 (0-1) 2-2 2; Msss 2-3 (1-2) 0-0 5; Hamel 2-4 (1-3) 0-0 5; McNeal (1-2) 0-0 3; Harris (0-1) 0-0 0; Totals 17-39 (6-19) 7-7 47