If the Pioneers are in emergency mode late and need a big bucket this season, they may start dialing up Reno 911. Sophomore Keyton Reno showed Friday night that he's a deadly shooter with the game on the line.
Reno drained a buzzer-beating 3-pointer in Woodbury, pushing the Pioneers to a 54-51 victory in an instant classic against Cannon County. The last-second shot, which Reno took right in front of the Pioneer bench before he was mobbed by teammates after it sank through the net, gave Warren County its second victory this season and one that everybody will likely remember for a long time.
"That's the kind of game that these kids will be talking about for years - one you'll remember where you were when he hit the shot and something you'll remember as a teammate, player and coach," said Pioneer coach Danny Fish. "It was just a really good battle. I thought both teams executed and it never felt like either team could get separation. We'd hit shots, then they'd hit shots. I'm super proud of my guys."
Warren County (2-3) had just lost a nailbiter at Franklin County three days earlier 49-48 and was in danger of potentially dropping another heartbreaker in the waning seconds Friday. The Pioneers were whistled for a foul with 6.9 seconds to go that sent the Lions to the line for a chance to win, but two misses gave the Pioneers new life late.
Treyton Terry, who scored a game-high 14 points for the Pioneers, secured the second miss and started to immediately push the ball up the court. With a wall forming at halfcourt in front of the Pioneer point gaurd, Terry looked left and spotted Reno coming up the wing unguarded. With no time to stop and set, Reno made the catch and went up while floating to the left, but his aim was never better. His shot rattled in just as the horn sounded, sending a large contingent of Pioneer fans who made the short trip into a frenzy.
Outside shooting was big all night for the Pioneers as senior Alex van Vuuren nailed three triples on his way to a 13-point performance and senior Dylan Stepp got on the board for the first time this year with a 3-pointer to break a 16-16 tie midway through the second quarter.
The Pioneers trailed 29-27 at halftime, but were able to work their way into a 41-38 lead entering the fourth after Terry got cooking in the third quarter. He had three buckets during one frantic stretch in the period, allowing Warren County to build confidence entering a wild final eight minutes.
Reno connected on a three-point play and Van Vuuren drained a key triple during the fourth to start a see-saw battle down the stretch, one where the lead would change sides six times over the final six minutes. Reno's final shot sealed the win, sending Warren County home for the weekend happy.
The Pioneers return to play Monday at home against York Institute. Tip-off for the boys game is set for 7:30 p.m.
Pioneer scoring - Terry 14, van Vuuren 13, Devin Fish 10, Aaron Templeton 6, Reno 6, Stepp 3, Chance Whitlock 2
