At halftime, the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team had malfunctioned down the stretch and trailed 35-29 today in the Sub-Section 6A-South semifinals.
That first half was a battle from the get go! Here's a video clip that begins with 3:00 left in the first half:
Another first-half video clip (that begins with 2:03 on the clock) was added tonight to the previous blog post that focuses on the first half of the game.
K-M-S maintained a one- to two-possession lead through almost the entire second half. With 7:43 left, they had a 50-49 lead. Just over two minutes later, their lead was 54-50.
A similar script to the first half was playing out late in the second half. With 4:20 left, Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg scored in the paint to take a 60-54 lead. It was not looking good, but fortunately, there was plenty of game left. Our Jaguars would need every bit remaining.
With 2:19 left, K-M-S's Alex Call had a three-point play to give the Fighting Saints a 65-60 lead not long after B-B-E fought back to tie it at 60-60.
The Jaguars caught a break with 1:38 left, when the Fighting Saints missed the front end of a bonus opportunity, leaving the score at 65-60. The last 98 seconds were frantic, nerve-wracking and had the feel of a wild roller-coaster ride.
After the bonus free throw miss, Ashton Dingmann ripped down the defensive rebound, and the Jaguars were on the move. Just eight seconds later, Kaden Pieper pulled up for a top-of-the-key three-pointer and rip the cords to cut the deficit to 65-63.
K-M-S worked the ball down court and patiently passed around, and the Jaguar defense was caught flat-footed while senior Gage Thorson scored a completely wide open shot on the right block to give them a 67-63 lead with 1:02 left.
On the other end on an inbounds play, Ashton Dingmann canned a three-pointer on the right wing against stiff defense with 54 seconds left and K-M-S's lead down to 67-66. The Jaguars got a badly-needed stop before Ashton canned a left-wing three-pointer with 24 seconds to go. BANG! Just like that: B-B-E 69, K-M-S 67.
**Here's video from the final ticks of the game...it was crazy:
Final score: B-B-E 71, K-M-S 67. The Jaguars move on to the Sub-Section 6A-South championship game which will be on Tuesday, March 15 at 7 p.m. at Minnewaska Area high school. Their opponent will be state-ranked Hancock or state-ranked Ashby. Let's PACK THAT GYM on Tuesday night!!! This is B-B-E's fifth straight appearance in a subsection title game!
If they don't know by now, the Jaguars have to understand that everyone wants a piece of them. It's guns blazing at them, especially being the top seed. The Jaguars were absolutely 110 percent motivated today, so this wasn't a matter of not taking K-M-S seriously. What this game came down to was two teams duking it out that have been playing outstanding basketball all throughout January and February. The Fighting Saints had the talent to win Section 6A. Fortunately for the Jaguars, the stars aligned at just the right time as they put it all together to overcome that late five-point deficit in the final two minutes. Moving on!!!!
In the other semifinal game at Minnewaska... No. 2-seeded Ashby holds a 39-36 lead with 12:50 left in the game over No. 3-seeded Hancock. *Update: with 14.5 seconds left, Hancock has a 51-50 lead over Ashby after an Arrows player traveled with the ball to turn it over Final score: Hancock 53, Ashby 50. The Jaguars (24-4) will face Hancock (23-5) for the subsection title.
Section 6A quarterfinal boys' basketball scores on March 12:
Henning 77, Hillcrest Lutheran Academy 63
New York Mills 69, Battle Lake 44
Hancock 53, Ashby 50
Don't forget tonight's Belgrade V.F.W. pork chop and steak fry fundraiser event! It begins at 5 p.m. Bring the family!!! They do an outstanding job there grilling the chops and steaks!! After that it's OPEN GYM time!!!
