BY JIM MISUNAS jmisunas@gbtribune.com SALINA — The classic matchup between old-school basketball and shiny 3-point shooting tilted Great Bend's way in a hard-fought 54-49 Salina Invitational semifinal victory over Salina Central. Panther standout Ian Premer paved the way with back-to-back 28-point performances and double digit rebounding. Great Bend outscored the Mustangs 40-14 on 2-pointers and matched Salina Central 11-11 on free throws. The Mustangs gained a 21-point edge by outscoring the Panthers 24-3 from 3-point range. Premer was a 1-man offensive highlight show with 11 baskets, including a high-flying slam dunk. Crafty Jacob Hall matched Premer's double/double with 11 points and double-digit rebounds. The momentum shifted when Premer converted the Panthers lone 3-point goal after the Mustangs led 37-29 on Kaden Snyder's 3-pointer. Premer scored eight straight points and Jacob Hall scored off a nifty assist by Daxton Minton for a 10-0 scoring run and a 39-37 lead. After the Mustangs regained the lead 44-41, the Panthers outscored Salina Central 13-5 keyed by lock-down defense. Premer scored seven fourth-quarter points for a 49-44 lead. Hall and Izeah Reed clinched the victory by each converting three free throws in the final three minutes. "That was a good test," said Great Bend coach Kyle Kriegh. "The guys stuck with it, and thankfully, we got the win. Central is scrappy, but fortunately it was a long game." The Mustangs converted 6 of 8 first-half 3-pointers on open perimeter shots for a 31-25 halftime lead. Kamryn Jones converted four 3-pointers and scored 20 points. Snyder hit a trio of 3-pointers and scored 15 points. Ironically, the Mustangs shot 8 of 15 (55%) on 3-pointers and 7 of 21 (33%) on 2-pointers against the Panthers' interior defense. Kriegh assigned Minton after halftime to prevent Kamryn Jones from firing up 3-pointers. The strategy worked flawlessly when Jones shot 1 of 2 after halftime. Minton denied Jones the basketball and Snyder missed on a 3-pointer on the Mustangs' final chance to tie down 51-48. The Mustangs converted 4 of 15 second-half shots and scored 20 points. "On box-and-1, Dax did a good job," Kriegh said. "That first half, we left open shooters in our man and zone. We have to understand what every opponent's strength is. Salina Central 15 16 11 7 — 49 Great Bend 15 10 16 13 — 54 SALINA CENTRAL (5-5) (FG 3 FT TP)—Kamryn Jones 5-10 (4-6) 6-10 20, Snyder 5-9 (3-5) 2-4 15, Cole (1-2) 3-4 6, Greyson Jones 2-4 0-0 4, Ostmeyer 2-6 (0-1) 0-0 4, Peck 0-2 (0-1) 0, Gary 0-3 (0-1) 0-0 0, Totals 15-36 (8-15) 11-18 49 GREAT BEND (10-1) (FG 3 FT TP)—Ian Premer 11-19 (1-2) 5-11 28, Jacob Hall 4-11 (0-2) 3-9 11, Nicholson 2-5 (0-2) 0-0 4, Reed 2-6 3-4 7, Minton 1-3 (0-1) 0-1 2, Stroup 1-3 0-0 2, Wondra 0-2 (0-1) 0-0 0, Totals 21-49 (1-8) 11-25 54 Technical foul—Nicholson SALINA BOYS—1ST—Great Bend 10-1 vs. Andover 8-2/Salina South 4-6 winner; 3RD—Salina Central 5-5 vs. Andover 7-3/Salina South 3-7 loser; 5TH—; 7TH—SECOND ROUND—Great Bend vs. Salina Central; Andover vs. Salina South; Buhler vs. Wichita South; Abilene vs. Wamego; FIRST ROUND—Great Bend 72, Wichita South 42; Salina Central 55, Buhler 51; Andover 73, Wamego 33; Salina South 72, Abilene 59 ABILENE 47, PANTHERS 40 — Great Bend 10 5 11 14 — 40 Abilene 16 10 3 18 — 47 GREAT BEND (3-8) (FG 3 FT TP)—Meredith Mazouch 12, Prendergast 11, Mayers 6, McCauley 5, Bryant 2, Reimer 2, Katherine Mazouch 2 ABILENE (2-7) (FG 3 FT TP)—Tessa Herrman 22, Heintz 7, Taylor 5, McKenna Stover 4, Barberri 4, Crump 3, Crane 2 GREAT BEND (3-7) (FG 3 FT TP)—McCauley 2-7 (0-4) 0-0 4, Bryant 1-10 2-2 4, Meredith Mazouch 0-3 (0-2) 1-6 1, Reimer (0-2) 0-0 0, Siefkes 1-1 0-0 2, Prendergast 0-4 0-2 0, Mayers 0-1 0-0 0, Katherine Mazouch 0-9 (0-3) 1-4 1, Minton 0-1 0-0 0, Totals 4-38 (0-11) 4-14 12 SALINA GIRLS—1ST—Buhler 9-1/Salina South 6-4 winner vs. Andover High 8-2; 3RD—Wamego 5-5 vs. Buhler 8-2/Salina South 5-5 loser; 5TH—Salina Central 6-4 vs. Abilene 2-7; 7TH—Great Bend 3-8 vs. Junction City 1-7; SECOND ROUND—Buhler vs. Salina South; Andover 51, Wamego 35; Abilene 47, Great Bend 40; Salina Central vs. Junction City 1-6; FIRST ROUND—Buhler 67, Abilene 44; Salina South 42, Great Bend 12; Andover 81, Junction City 16; Wamego 38, Salina Cental 34