REJECTION ­— Fairmont’s Oliver Tordsen (second from right) blocks a shot by Pipestone Area’s William Debates (25) during Big South Conference basketball action Thursday night at Cardinal Gym in Fairmont. The Cardinals’ Harmon Schrunk (back) and the Arrows’ Tagon Woelber (2) watch the defensive gem. (Photo by Greg Abel)

FAIRMONT — Pipestone Area’s Rysley Borman nailed a late 3-pointer to defeat Fairmont on the road Thursday, 55-54.

After struggling with his shooting from the field the entire game, Borman sank a deep 3 to give his team the late lead.

Borman came out of the gates looking aggressive. He shot 2 for 10 from the field in the first half, but it didn’t deter him late when it mattered.

After playing more under control throughout the second half, Borman began taking control of the game midway through the last half of play. It began when fellow senior William Debates entered the game with 9 minutes remaining.

The two classmates were able to dwindle the Cardinals’ lead with their pick-and-roll combination until the once double-digit deficit was merely two points.

Debates finished the night with eight crucial points to go along with seven boards for the Arrows.

The third cog in the Arrows’ comeback machine was junior forward Makhi Winter. Winter did the bulk of his damage in the first half while Borman struggled to find his stroke. Winter ended his night with an efficient 17 points, five boards and some stellar defense for Pipestone.

A clutch free throw here and there ended up being the difference as the Cardinals struggled at the charity stripe, and the Arrows cashed in.

Down 54-52 with 14.4 seconds remaining, Borman knocked down the shot of the night to propel the Arrows to victory.

As for the Cardinals, they had control of the game throughout.

“This was an undefeated team coming in here and we showed that we can play with anybody,” Fairmont head coach Jared Thompson said. “We proved that, it came down to a close game, they just kept plugging away and we shot 10 for 20 from the free throw line in the second half and in a close game that’s going to get you.

“Oliver got a good look in the end and it just didn’t go in.”

Big-time play from junior post Oliver Tordsen speared their attack. Tordsen finished the night with 14 points and 11 boards to complete his double-double.

Helping Tordsen with the offensive load was sophomore guard Joseph Hackett. Hackett was a microwave shooter off the bench for the Cardinals, draining four out of his five shots from behind the arc, including the shot that put Fairmont up in the final minutes.

“You know Joseph being a 10th-grader, he gives us that spacer that we need,” Thompson said. “We have a lot of those physical players, but we needed some more shooting in the varsity lineup and he provides that and he’s a guy who is comfortable in big games from his other varsity experience, so he did a great job tonight.”

Helping Hackett in the backcourt was senior guard Levi Pooley. Pooley had an off shooting night but still managed to contribute eight points to go with six rebounds, four steals and a pair of assists.

With the win, the Arrows raise their record to 5-0 overall and will look to make it six, at 7 p.m. tonight against the Dawson-Boyd Blackjacks.

Fairmont (2-3) tips off the KwikTrip Holiday Tournament against Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 27, in Younge Gym on the Bethany Lutheran College campus in Mankato.

Pipestone 25 30 –55

Fairmont 33 21 –54

Pipestone (55)

Winter 6-9 3-6 17, Borman 4-18 4-6 13, Debates 3-6 2-6 8, Woelber 1-5 4-4 6, Bosma 1-2 2-3 5, Zephier 0-0 2-2 2, Quist 1-3 0-0 2.

Fairmont (54)

Tordsen 5-9 3-6 14, Hackett 4-6 0-0 12, Schrunk 3-5 3-6 9, Pooley 3-13 1-3 8, Toomer 2-4 1-2 5, Junkermeier 1-3 2-4 4, Geiger 1-5 0-0 2.

Jordan Thompson and Tavian Harvey each netted seven points to lift Fairmont to a 25-20 win over Pipestone Area during B-squad action Thursday night in Fairmont.

Joe Long chipped in five points for the Cardinals.

Reed Johnson tallied 12 points and Anthony Stegge contributed 11 more to engineer Fairmont’s 47-14 rout over Pipestone Area during C-squad play Thursday.

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Blue Earth Area 82, St. James 64 — Will Bromeland scorched the St. James gymnasium nets for a game-best 33 points to help power the Bucs to an 18-point Big South Conference triumph over the Saints on Thursday night.

Bromeland connected on seven of BEA’s 11 3-pointers to highlight his scoring numbers and pulled down 12 rebounds to finish with a double-double effort.

Gage Barker tossed in 12 points for the Bucs, Branson Hauskins and Jacob Grandgenett each scored 10 points, while teammate Max Loge chipped in six points, six rebounds and four assists.

BEA sizzled from the field, nailing 23 of 33 shots from 2-point range for 70 percent.

Brennan Kern scored 16 points to top the Saints, while Bennett Flohrs tossed in 15 points.

Blue Earth Area (5-1) plays host to Granada-Huntley-East Chain/Truman/Martin Luther at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 28 at the Buc Holiday Invite.

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New Ulm Cathedral 76, Granada-Huntley-East Chain/Truman/Martin Luther 56 — Jevan Wilfahrt and Jake Finstad each tallied a game-best 18 points to sprint the Greyhounds to a 20-point non-league win over the Jaguars on Thursday night in Northrop.

Carter Fox generated a double-double performance of 15 points and 13 rebounds to complement dishing out four assists for the Jaguars, while teammate Eli Jensen connected for 14 points.

Jackson Madsen tossed in nine points for the Jaguars, while Braeden Shell added six points and five boards.

The Jaguars (1-5) tip off the Buc Holiday Invite at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 28, against host Blue Earth Area.

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North Union 68, Eagle Grove 58 — Preston Guerdet dialed long distance three times to highlight his 17-point outing to propel the Warriors to a 10-point Top of Iowa Conference triumph over the Eagles on Thursday night in Armstrong.

Guerdet also pocketed three steals, while teammates Kyan Jones and Aiden Lofstrom each notched 12 points. Jones also distributed five assists, while Lofstrom pulled down six boards.

Kody Irmiter produced a double-double performance of 10 points and 10 rebounds for North Union, while Grady Madden chipped in nine points and three assists. Dan Fothergill added eight points.

North Union (9-2) travels to Garner-Hayfield/Ventura on Friday, Jan. 5.