FORT PIERRE - Stanley County had its best shooting performance of the season in downing Gettysburg 61-45 on Tuesday at Parkview Gymnasium.
The Buffs shot 54 percent from the field, 61 percent in the last three quarters. They came into the game shooting an average of just over 41 percent of their field goal tries.
"We played better the second half," Stanley County coach Don Shields said.
"We were kind of flat in the first half. We've had some tough competition, and we might have looked past them looking forward to Mobridge (Friday) and White River (Saturday)."
Stanley County trailed 15-10 in the first minute of the second quarter. But the Buffs defense held the Battlers without a field goal for almost 4 minutes, as they went on a 12-3 run to take the lead. It was a one-point Stanley County lead at halftime, 28-27.
Trevor Lopour scored 11 of his game-high 23 points in the third quarter as the Buffs began to distance themselves from their opponents.
Gettysburg went one-of-10 from the field in the third quarter, compared to 8-of-12 for the winners. The Buffs led by 15 going into the fourth quarter, and Gettysburg would get no closer than 11.
Lopour was the only double figure scorer for the Buffs. It was the 6-foot-4 senior's fifth game of 20 or more points in a season. The Buff reserves contributed 14 points.
Sean Luken led the Battlers with 13 points, with Jared Schrempp and Connor McPeck each having 11.
Gettysburg, which opened the season with a 10-game losing streak, drops to 2-14. The Buffs are now 8-8. The Battlers play at Faulkton on Thursday. Stanley County hosts Mobridge on Friday.
