The Salina South boys pulled away in the second half to win the third place game of the Salina Invitational Basketball Tournament over Clay Center Friday night.

The first half was a nip-and tuck affair, with neither team able to seize control of the game. At the half, the Cougars led the Tigers 26 – 23.

The Cougars came out and took over in the third quarter, leading by nine heading to the fourth.

The lead ballooned to double digits in the fourth quarter as the Cougars kept up the pressure and continued to hit their shots. In the end, South prevailed 74 – 61.

Justin Stonebraker led the Cougars in scoring with 19. Ryan Fox chipped in 14, Connor Ryan had 11, and Nathan Kroeker had 10.

Clay Center's Dalton Haist led all scorers, finishing with 25 points. Caleb Carson had 13, and Marc Scott contributed 8 points to go along with 10 rebounds.

The Cougars are now 4-9 on the season, while Clay Center falls to 2 – 10.