SIDNEY — Sidney kept its winning streak going while ending the longest winning streak of any Miami Valley League team.

The Yellow Jackets led most of Friday’s matchup with Stebbins and pulled away in the second half to a 55-39 victory. It’s their fifth consecutive win, and it snapped a nine-game winning streak by the Indians.

Stebbins hadn’t lost since Sidney won the first matchup between the two squads 60-49 on Dec. 12 in Riverside. Among the Indians’ nine consecutive victories was a three-point win over Tippecanoe; that is still the Red Devils’ lone league loss.

Sidney junior guard Julius Spradling scored 14 of his game-high 21 points in the second half to help the squad pull away. Most of his points came on fast breaks or drives, and Sidney coach John Willoughby said his ability to steal helps.

Spradling averages about two steals per game and is ranked seventh among MVL players. He ranks second in scoring, behind fellow junior guard A’Zon Steele.

“For the past two years, he was a good on-the-ball defender, and he still is,” Willoughby said of Spradling. “Now he’s reading the other players. He sees that a lot of the guys like to do a little spin in the lane, and he gets the spin moves all the time.

“He’s faster than anybody else on the court, so as soon as his hands are on the ball, he’s out in front of everybody.”

Steele finished with 14 points, including four free throws in the fourth quarter. Junior guard Ethan New added seven.

Willoughby credited Steele for helping propel the team in the first half, and he credited New for rebounding well.

“Ethan got a lot of key rebounds, and he gives us that toughness on loose balls or tough rebounds,” Willoughby said.

He also credited New and senior forward Mitchell Davis for containing Stebbins senior forward Bryson Bishop. Bishop, who is 6-foot-5, averages 13.5 points and 6.8 rebounds. He managed 10 points.

“He’s been hitting 3s recently, going out and shooting on the perimeter,” Willoughby said of Bishop. “Ethan and Mitchell did a great job on him.”

It was a big win for Sidney to stay in the MVL Valley Division race. The Yellow Jackets (10-5, 8-4) trail Stebbins (10-4, 9-3) by one game in divisional standings. Tipp (11-2, 11-1) leads the overall MVL race.

Sidney is scheduled to travel to West Carrollton (5-8, 5-5) on Tuesday. The squad beat the Pirates 56-47 on Dec. 16. Though West Carrollton has been inconsistent, it has posted a few impressive wins, including twice beating Vandalia-Butler (8-6, 8-4).

“Their size bothers us,” Willoughby said. “… We played pretty well defensively in the first game. But it’s always tough down there.”

Sidney led most of a back-and-forth first quarter on Friday, but Stebbins’ LaVelle Lyles made a put-back at the buzzer to give the squad a 12-11 lead.

The Yellow Jackets quickly retook control and led 24-19 after the second quarter, which had a lengthy delay due to a scoreboard issue.

Willoughby was happy with how Sidney played in the first half, especially since junior guard Jayce Daniel went out early in the first quarter after picking up two fouls.

“We worry about that, when one of our starters gets in foul trouble,” Willoughby said. “But Gavin Gillum came in and did an excellent job. He got his hands on a lot of balls defensively and kept his guy in front of him.”

Spradling scored seven in the third, New scored five and Davis scored four to power a 16-9 edge that boosted the lead to 40-28.

The Indians took advantage of some turnovers and scored seven straight to pull within 42-37, but Spradling broke free after a rebound and raced down the court for a layup with a little over 1:30 left, then he and Steele combined to make five free throws in a 7-0 run that put it out of reach.

“We had a bad stretch there, where we had not bad shots, but should have waited and taken a higher percentage shot,” Willoughby said. “We had a couple of turnovers there; A’Zon had a bad streak there. But he hit his free throws, which was key for us.”

Reach Bryant Billing at 937-538-4818, or follow @SidneyOHSports on Twitter and @BryantBillingSDN on Facebook.