The Washington Demons got their first win in boys’ basketball this season in dramatic fashion Friday night, using a huge second-half comeback to knock off conference rival Keokuk 55-53.

Washington fell behind by five points at the end of the first quarter and were trailing 34-19 at halftime. The Keokuk lead got as big as 17 points in the second half and would be 15 going into the final period, but the Demons responded.

Washington used big three-pointers from junior Drew Conrad and sophomore Nic Stone to spark a 13-0 run, which junior Rajan Roth capped off with a floater with two minutes left to take a 52-51 lead. The Demons would get free throws down the stretch and then keep the Chiefs from tying the game at the buzzer.

Conrad scored 11 of his team-high 17 points in the second half, while senior Logan McDole had 11 points and Roth and Stone scored 10 each. After the game, head coach Collin Stark told KCII Sports that his team showed incredible resiliency to complete the comeback.

“There were so many positives to that second half,” Stark said. “At half, we made a few adjustments by going to a defense called the amoeba defense. We’ve always talked about [how] when you work hard, good things happen.”

After an 0-2 start, Washington gets its first victory of the season in addition to winning its Southeast Conference opener. The Demon girls would not have the same good fortune, falling to Keokuk 51-39.

Washington only trailed by five at the end of both the first quarter and the first half, and they were only down one in the third period when the Chiefs ripped off a 19-4 run to take control.

Oaklee Sobaski scored 11 points to lead the Demons, while fellow junior Adalyn Long added 10 as Washington drops to 1-3. Both Demon teams will next play Tuesday at Mediapolis.