It’s no surprise that two of the Wolverine Conference girls basketball heavyweights had one epic slugfest on Tuesday night.
It came down to the final seconds, but Paw Paw tied the game with seven seconds left, and after a Three Rivers foul, hit two free throws with three seconds remaining for a wild 56-54 crossover victory.
The Wildcats’ Linsey Masnari and Teagan Reeves made it interesting all night. Masnari had 26 points, seven rebounds and three blocked shots. Reeves added 16 points, 15 rebounds and two blocked shots. It was just the second loss in 13 games this season for Three Rivers (11-2, 6-0 Wolverine West). Alexis Herbert added seven points and seven assists, and Cory Sanders finished with two points.
For Paw Paw (10-4 overall, 5-2 Wolverine East), Cloe Salman led a balanced scoring attack with 18 points. Jessica Beebe had 12 points and Kayli Bowen and Stephanie Bedford each had nine points.
The Redskins held a 16-12 lead after the first quarter, but the Wildcats tied it up at 27 at halftime. Three Rivers then took a 41-40 lead after three quarters.
Three Rivers coach Jason Bingaman could not be reached for comment.