MUSKEGON TWP. — For two quarters on Friday night, it looked like the Reeths-Puffer and Mona Shores boys basketball teams were headed for another close thriller, like they played earlier this season when the Sailors nipped the Rockets by two points.
But in what seemed like the blink of an eye, Mona Shores blew the game open with a massive third quarter run and handed the Rockets a 65-51 loss at R-P's Dan Beckeman Arena.
R-P fell to 5-13 overall and 3-4 in the O-K Green Conference. The Rockets have four games left in the regular season, with three on the road before the season finale against Muskegon at home. 
R-P's Alex Kieft launches a shot. Photo/Tyler Lirones
Mona Shores is now 7-11 and 4-3.
The Rockets, a developing team with a knack for playing well against good opponents, trailed by just six points at halftime.
Then Mona Shores started the second half on a 24-2 scoring run that put the game out of reach for the Rockets in a matter of minutes.
“We were trying to press, they broke the press a couple times,” said R-P head coach JR Wallace. “You end up trying to create some advantage points, and sometimes that’s the risk and reward you take when you're trying to press.”
R-P's Marvin Moore puts up a layup. Photo/Tyler Lirones
Part of the problem for R-P was adjusting to an aggressive and physical Mona Shores defense. The Sailors never let the Rockets get comfortable in their attack, forcing 17 turnovers.
“Ultimately, we’ve got to be stronger with the ball,” Wallace said. “We’ve got to take care of it, we’ve got to execute, we’ve got to match that toughness.”
Wallace said he hopes Friday’s loss can be a lesson for his team as it hits the stretch run. 
R-P's Brayden Mitchelson sidesteps a Mona Shores defender. Photo/Tyler Lirones
“One of the things that you have to do as you’re going into your manhood is learn how to take tough pills like that,” he said. “You have to swallow it and go through the line like a man and shake their hands, and focus on the next time.
“You want to be trying to play your best ball at the end of the season. There’s no losses, there’s just lessons. If we can learn those lessons we’ll be OK.”
Reeths-Puffer led for most of the first quarter, but a 10-4 run by Mona Shores to end the frame put the Sailors up 14-12 heading into the second.
The Rockets pulled back in front at the start of the second quarter, but another Sailor run swung the lead back. Mona Shores closed the half with a 11-2 spurt to lead 25-19 at the break. 
R-P's Elliot Schneider gets a shot off. Photo/Tyler Lirones
Then came the big run. Mona Shores scored the first 15 points of the second half as part of a 24-2 run that increased the lead to 49-21. The Rockets recovered slightly to end the third, narrowing the score to 53-31.
Reeths-Puffer had a 20-12 edge in the fourth quarter, but it wasn’t enough to close the gap.
Marvin Moore led Reeths-Puffer with 19 points, including 11 in the second half. Brayden Mitchelson added 18 points, nine rebounds and four steals. Drew Brooks scored six points and grabbed four rebounds and Kristian Brown added eight boards. 