STEP V! YESSSS!!!!!! Jaguars win!!! Final Four-Bound! (VIDEO)

After falling behind 52-47 with 10:31 left in the game, the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team dug their heels in and pushed back at Sleepy Eye St. Mary's by picking up the tempo and turning up the defensive pressure. Kaden Pieper made two free throws with 10:21 left. The Knights scored in the paint, but Pieper's layup with 9:58 left made it 54-51. Both teams traded empty possessions, and SESM then had a turnover when Trent Steffensmeier stepped on the baseline while running down a loose ball. With 8:42 left, Tanner Shelton scored in the paint to get the Jaguars within one point. With 7:40 left, Luke Dingmann swiped an offensive rebound on his own miss with three defenders crashing the boards. He sank a low post shot to put the Jaguars ahead 55-54.

Little did anyone know in The Barn at the time, but the Jaguars were on what was at least a 13-0 run that put the game away. With 2:02 left, Will VanBeck scored on a layup to make it a 64-54 lead! The Knights cut it to six points with just over one minute to go, but it was too little, too late.

FINAL SCORE: B-B-E 70, SEMS 63!!!! It has been pandemonium here at Williams Arena! I had posted an incorrect final score. This is a truly unforgettable experience to be here and take this all in. I managed to miss the post-game press conference with Coach Anderson and part of the team, but what matters most is that the Jaguars won, and we are moving on in the championship bracket! Special thanks to Joe Brown with the West Central Tribune for explaining to me how the post-game interviewing worked. I didn't get going in time to make it for B-B-E's press conference as I was re-learning how to make my way around Williams Arena, but I did watch and record SESM's press conference. They were very dejected, and they spoke highly of the Jaguars and were a team that lost with all the class in the world. I tip my hat to them! Losing at this level is never easy.

Kaden Pieper led the Jaguars with 24 points, while Ashton Dingmann added 15. Also in double figures were Gavin Kampsen with 12 points and Luke Dingmann with 11 points.

AND HOW ABOUT OUR FANS! Wow!!! The student section from Jaguar Country brought it today!!! Bravo!!! A video was added to the previous blog post that shows when the Jaguars took the court at Williams Arena with a huge crowd of fans cheering.

**Here's a video clip from late in the first half today:


SESM is now 28-3 overall and drops into the consolation bracket, with the semifinals taking place tomorrow. B-B-E is 27-4 going into the State Final Four!!!

UP NEXT FOR THE JAGUARS: the Class 1A state semifinal game on Friday, March 25 at 2 p.m. back here at The Barn!

In the 5 p.m. quarterfinal game...favorite and No. 3-seeded New Life Academy of Woodbury has a quick 4-0 lead in the opening minute. They are FAST!!!!! If they win this game, they play our Jaguars on Friday in the semis. UPDATE: the second minute of the game went just as the first minute went...with NLA now holding an 8-0 lead after another fast break shot. I haven't seen speed like this at the Class 1A level in a long time. Update: with 15:16 left, Sacred Heart's Tomkinson drained a 12-footer to get the Eagles on the scoreboard. Sacred Heart is a private school in East Grand Forks. Update: with 14 minutes to go, NLA has a 10-6 lead. **And with 13:50 to go, the Eagles have scored on a fastbreak shot to make it a 10-8 game.

Update: with 12 minutes to go, Sacred Heart has tied the game at 12-12. They have come to life and are handling the pressure NLA is bringing. Update: with 11:20 to go, Sacred Heart has a 13-12 lead after getting a free throw to pull in front. Update: with 11:13 left in the first half, NLA took a 15-13 lead with a three-pointer.

Update: with 8:22 to go, Sacred Heart has tied the game on a paint shot to make it 17-17. Update: Sacred Heart took a brief 21-19 lead, but NLA has now turned up the pressure and opened up the offense while building a 25-21 lead with a 6-0 run. There's under six minutes to go before halftime.

Update: with 42 seconds left in the first half, NLA has a 34-30 lead. It's been a great game so far now that Sacred Heart has settled in and handled the pressure.

SECOND HALF UPDATE: NLA led 42-32, but the Eagles stormed back to tie it at 42-42. Then NLA surged ahead to take a 53-42 lead. Now with 6:37 left in the game, NLA holds a 57-46 lead. The game is not over!

Final: NLA 64, Sacred Heart 58. New Life Academy improves to 27-3 with the win, while Sacred Heart falls to 28-4 and heads to the consolation bracket.  *****We will need multiple fan buses on Friday!!! We need to pack our side of the stands at the Barn!!!! This will be one MAJOR factor in defeating New Life Academy on Friday!!!

It's time to head home and get back to the office. **This blog post is a wrap for the most part...I'll get more state tournament notes added in a new blog post later tonight.

THANK YOU to Bonanza Valley State Bank of Brooten for sponsoring this blog post! Their large color ad (construction loans) paid for multiple barrels of color ink in this week's Voice!!