OSCODA - Jan. 9, 2007 - Oscoda staged a dramatic comeback Tuesday, but Standish-Sterling had just enough left at the end to pull out a 64-60 North East Michigan Conference boys basketball victory over the Owls.

SSC went on a 24-3 run midway through the first half to open up a 24-9 lead and held a 38-22 edge at the half. But the Owls got untracked after halftime, with Barak Henderson scoring 13 of his 19 points and Adam Dettmer adding 9 of his 16 in the final two quarters to bring Oscoda back to a 58-58 tie.

"We had a game plan, and the kids executed it," said Oscoda coach Scott Lueck. "I'm very proud of that. (It was) a fabulous high school basketball game and atmosphere."

SSC's Garrett Reid broke the tie with two free throws, and after Oscoda failed to tie on its next possession, Aaron Pickvet made two more with 21 seconds left for a 62-58 lead.

Oscoda's Jason Jimenez cut it to 62-60 with six seconds left and after a time out, the Owls pulled off a steal, but missed the potential game-tying shot. Jourdan LaBeau closed out the scoring with a pair off free throws.

"We have to continue playing at this level if we expect to compete night in and night out," Lueck said. "Hopefully our kids see their potential and will focus on becoming consistent."

Derek Welmers had a 10-point first quarter and Austin Collier added 7 points in the second to help the Panthers built their early lead. Aaron Pickvet led SSC with 15 points, including three 3-pointers, with Welmers adding 12 and Justin Migut and Ashton Gulvas scored 9 apiece.

Henderson had 9 rebounds to go with his game-high 19 points and Ryan Mahalak had five assists for the Owls.

The Panthers (5-1, 3-1 NEMC) kept pace with Pinconning, staying a game behind the Spartans in the league's second spot. SSC is at John Glenn on Friday, while Oscoda (3-3, 1-2) travels to Pinny.