Third-seeded Britton-Hecla outscored second seed Webster Area in the second half but wasn’t able to overcome a disastrous second quarter in a 78-57 boys basketball loss in the Region 1A semifinals in Webster on Friday.
The Braves, which finished the season with a 13-9 record, had earned the semifinal berth by stopping Aberdeen Roncalli last week Tuesday 59-54 , avenging a 59-53 loss during the regular season. Webster Area had also defeated the Braves during the regular season 58-47.
Webster Area (14-8), seeded 16th among SoDak 16 qualifiers, traveled to number one seed and unbeaten West Central last night Tuesday to determine a berth in the Class A state tournament in Rapid City March 19-21.
Knecht’s crew held a 6-4 lead halfway through the opening period but the Bearcats’ sophomore guard Seth Lesnar was a one-man wrecking crew in the first quarter. He rained in a trio of three-pointers and had 17 points in the first eight minutes to boost Webster Area to a 21-12 lead at the break.
But it was the second quarter that really sealed the Braves’ fate. Eight straight turnovers against a swarming Webster Area defensive effort in just over four minutes resulted in a 22-0 run and a 43-12 lead. Nathan Folkman finally ended the scoring drought off a Jaxon Zuehlke assist and B-H outscored the hosts 8-4 in the final three minutes to cut the margin to 47-20 at intermission. The Bearcats hit seven treys in the first half and ended up with 12 from long range for the game.
The Braves did muster some offensive firepower to open second half play. Will Richter netted a trey and two-pointer, Ben Folkman hit from downtown, Nathan Folkman scored off a rebound, Zuehlke hit a fielder, and Mitch Burger canned a free toss as B-H put together a 13-3 run in the first three and a half minutes to cut the margin to 50-33. But that was as close as the Braves would get the rest of the way.
“We kind of ran into a buzzsaw in this one,” said B-H coach Troy Knecht. “What a great atmosphere at the Armory. Hats off to Webster for that. We played well enough early to be in the game at the end of the first quarter, despite making some bad decisions on defense. In the second quarter, though, the wheels came off. We turned it over a lot and it was lights out.
“In the second half we fought back and got it to 17 points, so I thought we had a chance there. Unfortunately they kept making shots and we couldn’t overcome the large deficit. At the end of the day I’m proud of the boys for competing and hanging in there but as is typical it’s a shotmaker’s game and they were good in that department. If you look at the shooting percentages for each squad and the rebound total you get a pretty good picture of the outcome.”
Webster Area shot 52% from the field, including 12-20 from the three-point line, while Britton-Hecla shot at a 32% clip. The Bearcats also held a 37-26 rebounding advantage.
Richter led the Braves with 16 points, Zuehlke had 11 points, eight rebounds and a pair of blocked shots, and Lofton Heer nine counters on three treys in the final period. Vietor added six boards and two blocks, and Mitch Burger dished out four assists. Jack Shoemaker, who had five three-pointers, led four Bearcats in double figures with 22.
“It was another good season for us,” concluded Knecht. “Our trajectory is up as we won three more games than we did last year. We’re going to have to spend time shooting a lot in the off-season so we can gain the kind of confidence needed to be a consistent winner and to be able to compete with the top teams on our schedule.
“Hopefully we can come back next year and take another step. It’s going to take a lot of work, though. If the time is dedicated to the weight room and the game this summer then we’ve got a chance to keep rising. If we take a year off and do the status quo, then there’s a chance we remain average. I know what I want for the program as well as the other coaches…it’s up to the players to do the hard things that make basketball teams great.”
Britton-Hecla 59
Aberdeen Roncalli 54
Britton-Hecla trailed at the first three quarter breaks but outscored Aberdeen Roncalli 15-9 in the final period to post a 59-54 win in first round play of the Region 1A boys basketball tournament in Britton.
“First of all, it was a lot of fun to host a region game,” said Knecht. “The atmosphere was great and it was a highly competitive contest. We started out a little slow, but we had a long lay-off so that didn’t surprise me. I think it took us a half to realize we were going to have to compete at a high level to win the game.
“Although it was close all the way, I really felt like we were going to win,” Knecht added. “We just kept grinding on defense and getting good looks in the paint on offense and it worked out. I’m proud of where we are. We just need to keep taking steps.”
Following a Jaxon Zuehlke three-point play with 3:35 to play that gave the Braves a 54-50 lead, Roncalli hit back-to-back buckets to knot the contest at 54-all with 2:47 left, the seventh time the hard-fought game was tied. Zuehlke, who had seven of his team-high 21 points in the final stanza, broke the deadlock with a follow shot with 47 seconds remaining and Chaz Vietor hit three free throws in the final 25 seconds as Roncalli went scoreless for the final 2:47.
Vietor backed up Zuehlke’s effort with 15 counters and Will Richter netted 14. Zuehlke grabbed eight rebounds, Vietor hauled in five, and Richter added four boards, three assists, and four steals. Heer chipped in with four assists.
FOR FULL STATS, SEE THIS WEEK'S JOURNAL.
