WINONA – The West Lincoln Bears returned from the Holiday slumber to capture a 53-48 victory over the Class 6A Grenada Chargers Saturday in the Winona Crossroad Challenge.

     “This was a good win coming back after the holidays to knock off the rust,” said West Lincoln coach Lane Young. “We played really well in spurts. I was pleased with our bench play. They came in and gave us a big lift. We did a good job making our free throws at the end to put us in front.”

     West Lincoln begins a five-game, Region 7-1A road tour Tuesday. They visit Vicksburg to battle the St. Aloysius Flashes for three games. The junior varsity boys tip off the action at 5 p.m. The varsity girls play at 6, followed by the boys at 7:30.

W. Lincoln 53, Grenada 48

     In a tough battle between Class 1A and 6A, the Bears and Chargers fought back and forth in a close game. The Bears led 15-14 at the quarter break.

     West Lincoln managed to hold off Grenada and take a 33-31 lead into halftime.

     In the second half, the Bears (15-2) relied on tough defense to overpower the Chargers 20-17 to secure the win. They made 14 of 18 free throw attempts in the game.

     Senior forward Lucas Burris pumped in a team-high double-double of 14 points and 11 rebounds to lead West Lincoln. He also had 5 blocked shots.

     Sophomore guard Duane Marshall contributed 14 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists to the win. Sam Bivens helped on the boards, collecting 10 rebounds.

     Tyrin Jones was the offensive leader for the Chargers with 19 points. Trey Bledsoe provided 10 points.