By JIM WALKER

jim.walker@irontontribune.com

MERCERVILLE — The South Gallia Rebels took the odd quarters and the St. Joseph Flyers took the even quarters.

Unfortunately for the Flyers, the Rebels did better with their quarters and took the final score as South Gallia slipped by St. Joseph 74-68 on Tuesday.

The Rebels opened the game by outscoring the Flyers 23-12 in the first quarter as Tanner Boothe scored 12 points while Brycen Stanley and Jahvin Davis each hit 3-pointers.

Carter Johnson scored 9 points and Wesley Neal hit a 3-pointer for the Flyers.

In the second quarter it was the Flyers who put up the most points by outscoring the Rebels 20-13 and sliced the South Gallia lead to 36-32.

Neal had another shot from behind the arc and scored 12 points while Johnson added 4 more points in the quarter.

Stanley hit three 3-pointers for South Gallia (3-1).

The scoring advantage went back to the Rebels in the third quarter as they outscored the Flyers 23-18 to extend their lead to 59-50.

Gage Frazer knocked down a pair of 3-pointers and scored 10 points while Stanley hit a trey and had 7 points.

Neal scored 6 points, Evan Balestra had 5 points, Johnson got 4 more and Drew Brown drained a triple for the Flyers in a balanced offensive production.

The Flyers (0-3) managed to outscore South Gallia 18-15 in the fourth quarter but it wasn’t enough erase the 9-point deficit.

Eli Whaley and Landon Rowe both buried 3-pointers with Balestra and Brown getting 4 points each.

The Rebels covered 5-of-8 from the foul line to fight off the Flyers’ comeback.

Neal led the Flyers with 23 points. Johnson scored 17, Balestra had 11 and Brown 9.

Stanley had 25 points, Boothe 21 and Frazer 17 for the Rebels.

St. Joseph hosts Northwest on Friday.

St. Joseph    12 20 18 18 = 68

South Gallia 23 13 23 15 = xx

ST. JOSEPH (0-3): Aiden Deborde 0 0 0-0 0, Eli Whaley 0 1 2-2 5, Landon Rowe 0- 1 0-0 3, Evan Balestra 4 0 3-6 11, Drew Brown 3 1 0-2 9, Wesley Neal 7 2 3-4 23, Carter Johnson 7 0 3-4 17. Totals: 21 5 11-18 68. Fouls: 16. Fouled out: None.

SOUTH GALLIA (3-1): Tanner Sanders 2 0 0-0 4, Gage Frazer 4 2 3-6 17, Brycen Stanley 4 5 2-3 25, Jahvin Davis 1 1 0-0 5, Tanner Boothe 9 0 3-4 21, Hunter Wright 1 0 0-2 2. Totals: 21 8 8-15 74. Fouls: 16. Fouled out: None.