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GRAHAM – The Brownwood Lions rebounded from a disappointing finish Friday night and reclaimed sole possession of second place in the District 6-4A standings with a 52-44 victory over the Graham Steers Saturday afternoon.

Coming off a 59-56 home loss to Stephenville (12-16, 2-3), the Lions (13-15, 3-3) defeated Graham (15-15, 2-4) for the second time after knocking off the Steers, 70-66, in the 6-4A opener on Jan. 13.

Brownwood took control of the game thanks to an 18-0 run that ended the first half and started the second. Down 18-12 midway through the second period, the Lions scored the last 10 points of the quarter to open a 22-18 halftime edge. Then, Brownwood tacked on the first eight points of the third period to build their largest advantage of the game, 30-18.

The Steers crept within four points, 33-29, by the end of the third quarter, but the Lions stretched the lead back to double digits, 44-33, with three minutes left. Again, Graham made a last gasp run at Brownwood and shaved the deficit to 48-44 with under a minute to go. But unlike Friday night’s late struggles, the Lions held on down the stretch to secure the win.

Tristan Salinas paced the Lions with 14 points trailed by Ike Hall with 10, Luke Gray with nine, Thad Hinds with eight, Gage Sparks with five, Morsello Hooker with four, and Hayden Noe with two points.

For Graham, Tyson Weaver led the way with 11 points.

Brownwood is off Tuesday, then hosts district leader Glen Rose on Friday night.