An overwhelming 63-46 home victory by the Pinedale High School Wranglers against the Mountain View Buffaloes secured the Wrangler’s position as the No. 1 team in the 3A Southwest Quadrant as the regular season passed into the rearview mirror.
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PINEDALE – An overwhelming 63-46 home victory by the Pinedale High School Wranglers against the Mountain View Buffaloes secured the Wrangler’s position as the No. 1 team in the 3A Southwest Quadrant as the regular season passed into the rearview mirror.
Pinedale overcame a 1-point deficit at halftime to outscore the Buffaloes, 18-5, in an epic third quarter on Feb. 23.
Leaving it all on the court in the fourth quarter, Pinedale made a determined drive to widen its lead to more than 15 points as regulation ended before an ecstatic, packed house of fans.
Up next for Pinedale is the 3A West Regional Tournament in Thermopolis. The Wranglers play the host school and No. 4 seed on Thursday at 7 p.m.
Mountain View found itself ahead by a single possession, 12-9, at the end of a neck-and-neck first quarter.
The Pinedale defense threw the first punches with steals by seniors Jayce Ramage and Owen McMillen. Senior Josh Gosar netted a close-range shot. Ramage blocked an attempted shot by Mountain View.
Taking possession, McMillen drained a 3-pointer. Freshman Matthew Gosar entered the fray and tossed in a jumper.
Pinedale topped Mountain View in scoring, 12-10, in a tight second quarter.
Defensive pressure by senior Bridger Kaiser resulted in a turnover. Josh Gosar went 2-for-2 at the charity stripe and commenced a 5-point run to pull the Wranglers into the lead, 16-15.
Pinedale remained ahead following a jumper by Ramage and outside shot from junior Nicolas Sletten.
Mountain View tossed in a buzzer-beating close-range shot to take control of the scoreboard, 22-21, at halftime.
Pinedale refused to yield the court in an explosive third quarter. A pair of 3-pointers by Josh Gosar in the opening 30 seconds of the second half returned the initiative to Pinedale, 27-22.
Gosar then netted a third outside shot and McMillen rustled a steal. Gosar and Ramage both found openings in Mountain View’s perimeter to score and Ramage made a block.
McMillen followed up with a deep 3-pointer. Kaiser and Ramage rounded out third-quarter scoring with a trio of free throws.
The Wranglers dominated the scoreboard, 40-26, as the fourth quarter commenced.
Pinedale outmaneuvered Mountain View, 23-20, in the final eight minutes of regulation. Gosar netted a pair of outside shots. McMillen and Ramage both contributed five points to the tally with Kaiser netting four points. Senior Brody Hamby made a layup and scored from the free-throw line.
Ramage topped off the Senior Night victory with a 3-point play in the final 15 seconds of the game.
Gosar posted his sixth double-double for the season against Mountain View with 26 points and 11 rebounds.
Ramage and McMillen both tallied 11 points against the Buffaloes, with seven from Kaiser, three apiece by Sletten and Hamby and two from Matthew Gosar.
