Mountain Home had rallied from an 8-point deficit to force overtime, but it was the Vilonia Eagles' turn to rally in overtime as they claimed a 54-53 victory over the Bombers in 6A/5A-2 blended conference play Tuesday night at The Hangar. The Bombers completed their rally from eight down with 2:12 left in regulation when Luke Dibble hit 1 of 2 free throws to knot the score at 46-46. Mountain Home missed a pair of free throws on its next possession, however, and it turned the ball over on its next two possessions. “We need to look at all those possessions we could have done better,” Mountain Home head coach Josh Fulcher said. “There were turnovers, missed free throws, we had guys in the wrong spots, and we gave up some second-chance opportunities. When we bailed out of executing our game plan, we paid for it.” Vilonia’s Tyler Moran made 1 of 2 free throws, and teammate Hunter Neely made both with :23.2 remaining for a 49-46 Vilonia lead. Mountain Home junior Luke Kruse came up big with a 3-pointer with :13 left to knot the score, and after Vilonia called timeout, the Eagles threw a lob pass that was intercepted by Bomber senior Garrett Dietsche. Dietsche took a couple dribbles and let a shot fly from 50 feet that bounced off the rim as the buzzer sounded, sending the game to overtime. “They’re gritty,” Fulcher said of his team. “They’re fighting. We just have to show more poise in some of those instances. It’s not just one or two guys, it’s a collection of guys.” Mountain Home’s Talyn Benton scored to open the extra session, and Dietsche made 1 of 2 foul shots for a 52-49 lead. Moran answered with a big 3 for the Eagles with 1:39 remaining, but Mountain Home’s Hunter Beshears made 1 of 2 free throws to give the hosts the lead once again. Vilonia’s Grant Goers made the final bucket of the night for the visitors, lofting a high, floating shot over the hand of 6-9 Mountain Home post David Wehmeyer with :25 remaining to give the Eagles the 54-53 lead. The Bombers called for timeout with :05.8 left, and they got the ball in the hands of Benton, who drove around the left wing, down toward the paint, where he collided with Vilonia’s Tyson Wertz. Benton’s shot went in the basket as the buzzer sounded, drawing a roar from the home crowd, but the Bomber junior was whistled for a charge, ending the contest. “We had the opportunities," Fulcher said. "For us to take the next step, we have to play with poise down the stretch. We have to get the easy stuff right. Early in the game, we missed the easy stuff.” Kruse was the only player for either team to score more than 10 points in the game. The 6-2 junior tossed in a game-high 16 points. Moran paced Vilonia with 10 points. Join for as low as $999 for a year Subscribe Now Both Mountain Home teams are idle on Friday and return to action Tuesday when they travel to Morrilton. “We have high character,” Fulcher added. “We can’t let this one turn into two, because we have Morrilton. We have to gut it out every possession and not have any lapses and let teams hang around.” Mountain Home trailed 5-4 but scored seven straight and led 11-5 on a bucket by Wehmeyer. The hosts took a 12-7 lead into the second period. Vilonia climbed to within 14-13 early in the second, and the Eagles eventually gained the lead at 25-24 on a basket by Caleb Johnson with 2:03 left in the half. Eight different players scored in the second quarter for the Eagles, who scored 20 in the period and took a 27-24 lead into the intermission. The Eagles built their lead to seven in the third, leading 34-27 when the Bombers mounted a small rally, pulling within three on a jumper by Dietsche. But the momentum turned again as Wertz scored, and after a Mountain Home turnover, Goers was fouled on a 3-point attempt and made all three free throws for a 39-31 lead. Kruse ended the third with a 3 to pull within five, and the Bombers were within 41-39 when Wehmeyer converted an old-fashioned 3-point play with 6:34 remaining. The Eagles answered again, scoring five straight and going up 46-39 on a 3-pointer by Moran. Beshears canned a 3 with 4:38 remaining, and teammate Colton Peters hit another trey at the 3:01 mark to pull within 46-45.