Photo by Chris Drummond Minneota’s Peyton Sheik looks to drive during their Section 3A tournament game against Canby on Thursday. Minneota defeated Canby 69-59.

MINNEOTA — The eighth-seeded Minneota and ninth-seeded Canby boys basketball teams started their playoff quests on Thursday looking to create some momentum. The Vikings and Lancers found themselves in a tight battle, with the score even at halftime, but a strong second-half run by Minneota was enough for them to earn a 69-59 victory in the Section 3A tournament.

It was a battle tested affair for the first 18 minutes as it was tied up at 27-all at halftime. The Lancers’ 3-point shooting kept them in the game while a strong inside game from the Vikings did the same for them. In the second half, the Vikings started on a 17-8 run that gave them the lead for good. Minneota head coach David Busselman talked about how that run was key in the victory.

“I think when you can get a run going, the other team sees it and feels it,” Busselman said. “I talked about it at halftime, the first team that makes a run is going to win this thing and let’s make that be us.”

Sophomore forward Peyton Sheik for the Vikings led his team in scoring with 18 points and had some critical defensive steals in order to keep the lead over the Lancers. Canby head coach Eric Hansen spoke on his team’s performance in the game and attributed the loss to shooting woes.

“We just couldn’t put the ball in the hoop,” Hansen said. “Our role players gave us points but our normal scorers just couldn’t make shots. We also missed a lot of free throws, tough to win when you do that.”

No final stats were available at press time.

This victory is the third win for the Vikings over the Lancers this season. It also sets up a rematch on Saturday at 11 a.m. in Montevideo with Central Minnesota Christian, who defeated the Vikings 51-33 on Jan. 11. Busselman advocated about his team’s chances in Saturday’s matchup.

“Anything can happen, they’re number one for a reason and do a lot of things well,” Busselman said. “We are playing our best basketball of the season and anything can happen, all you can do is ask for a chance and go for it.”