VIENNA — Vienna hosted Newburg this past week, and in a thrilling showdown, the boys put on a display for the ages. The Eagles rolled to a 42-10 victory, with scoring spread evenly across the roster.

Tanner Hallahan led the way with 10 points, all of them in the first half.

“I feel good about my play, using the time given to me to get stuff done,” Hallahan said. “I wanted to get my teammates more involved in the second half, I felt better passing and teamwork.”

Hallahan also debuted his signature move, a 360 spin off the left-hand drive to finish with the right. He connected on the move multiple times, though some foul calls went uncalled.

“I’m not gonna work on my 360 at all, I’m just gonna keep doing it,” Hallahan said. “If they don’t call it, whatever, I’m just gonna keep doing it.”

While Hallahan led in scoring, the night included strong contributions from several players. Drew Crum, Vienna’s leading scorer this season, had his only “off” game so far with just two points, but he still impacted the game with passing and team play.

“He did really well (Crum talking about Hallahan) and did a great job stepping up for us in this performance,” Crum said. “It was fine I only scored two, I helped out my teammates more and wanted to get them set up.”

Assists are not currently tracked, though this game showed the impact of ball movement, something to consider adding in the future.

The highlight of the night came when Eli Messersmith drilled a half-court buzzer-beater to close the first half, igniting the Vienna crowd. The gym’s roar was so loud it could probably be heard at the Maries County Courthouse.

“I feel great,” Messersmith said. “I just pretty much wanted to get more than two points and with that shot, it definitely helped.”

Messersmith finished with seven points, making him the second-leading scorer. He was followed by David Martin and Zach Wansing with six apiece, Weston and Coen Schwartze with four each and Alex Wieberg with three.

While the boys game stole the spotlight, the girls A team also earned a victory, defeating Newburg 13-4 in a low-scoring contest. The team relied on balanced scoring, with Macey Martin leading the way with five points. Grace Barnhart added four, Emerson Jeremy contributed three and Nicole Rowden chipped in one.

Coached by KC Curler, the girls maintained control throughout, showing poise on defense and enough offense to seal the win. Though the score was not as lopsided as the boys’ game, the girls’ contest still gave Vienna fans reason to cheer as both squads closed the night with victories.

Speaking of cheering, the school received a letter from Prairie Home this week recognizing the welcoming and accepting atmosphere created by the VMS Cheer Squad during the basketball games. The squad sat on the floor while the visiting cheerleaders performed, cheered for both teams, even the coaches and put on a show of their own. With pyramids and chants that parents joined in on, the cheer squad helped make the night memorable for everyone in attendance.