Boys basketball: Newman takes third at Forreston tournament

After losing to Byron 53-50 in the semifinals of the Forreston Holiday Tournament on Monday evening, the Newman Comets bounced back to defeat Lena-Winslow 46-37 in the third-place game.

The final rounds of the tournament were postponed from Thursday and Friday due to the winter storm that hit the area late last week.

In the third-place game, Newman turned a 19-15 halftime deficit into a 34-28 lead after three quarters with a 19-9 surge in the third, then closed the game with a 12-9 scoring edge in the final period. Lucas Simpson scored 11 of his game-high 19 points in the second half, while Ayden Batten, Gabe Padilla and Nolan Britt added eight points each; Batten and Padilla both hit a pair of 3-pointers.

Byron outscored the Comets 23-20 in the second half to pull out the semifinal victory after the teams were tied 30-30 at halftime. Simpson poured in 23 points for Newman, and Britt scored 17.

Jack Hiveley had 20 points to pace the Tigers, and Ryan Tucker added 19.

Consolation championship

Milledgeville 47, River Ridge 45: Trailing 22-7 after the first quarter and 29-13 at halftime, the Missiles pulled off another comeback at the Forreston tournament, outscoring the Wildcats 18-11 in the third quarter and 16-5 in the fourth to rally and claim the consolation title.

Kacen Johnson scored 10 of his team-high 16 points in the fourth quarter for Milledgeville, and Connor Nye scored all nine points after halftime. Karter Livengood scored six, and Colten Hendrick added five for the Missiles.

Jack Ketelsen scored 17 points to lead River Ridge.