Berean boys make the big game

Another game ... another big first half for Berean Academy.

Coming off a 73-62 first-round win over Lyndon on Thursday when the Warriors scored 28 points in the first quarter, Berean had a similar start Friday night against Salina-Sacred Heart in the semifinals of the Class 2A boy’s state basketball tournament at Bramlage Coliseum in Manhattan.

This time, the Warriors put up 29 points in the first half en route to a 58-47 win over Sacred Heart and a trip to the title game at 6 p.m. tonight against St. Mary’s Colgan — a team that has been in the last nine state title games.

“We were a little impatient, but we were strong with the ball,” said Berean head coach Lewis Wiebe.

The difference between Thursday and Friday for Berean (24-1) is that their opponent had a much harder time putting the basket in the hoop.

The Knights (20-5) did not hit double-digits in scoring for the first 10 minutes of the first half.

“They were just quick off the ball, and we couldn’t keep up,” Sacred Heart head coach Pat Martin said.

In fact, in the first half, the Knights managed just 18.8 percent shooting from the field while Berean Academy shot 54.5 percent.

The Warriors’ defense held Sacred Heart to just three field goals in the first half, compared to the 12 connected on by Berean.

“We hit some shots early and made a lot of tough shots in the first quarter,” Wiebe said. “Defensively, we didn’t give them much, and it really seemed to take a lot of energy out of them.”

In the second half, the Warriors led by as many as 21 in the fourth quarter as Sacred Heart’s shooting woes continued.

Despite scoring the first six points of the second half, the Knights were unable to close the gap any closer than 12 for the game.

“We tried to get everything back in one possession in the first half,” Martin said. “We did try to get after it a bit more in the second, and the guys really never gave up.”

Sacred Heart did outscore the Warriors 25-17 in the fourth quarter, but it was too little, too late. However, the Knights only managed 33.3 percent shooting from the field for the game whereas the Warriors shot 52.8 percent.

Josiah Busenitz led the Warriors with 11 points and Karlan Wiebe added 10 in the effort.

Now, the Warriors will face St. Mary’s-Colgan, a team that defeated Berean in the first round of the tournament two years ago.

“They’re just tough as nails,” Lewis Wiebe said about the Panthers. “They are just hard-nosed, but we’ll look forward to it.”

Class 2A state basketball

tournament

at Bramlage Coliseum Manhattan

Semifinals

Boys

Berean Academy 58,

Salina-Sacred Heart 47

Sacred Heart 4 9 9 25 — 47

Berean Academy 16 13 12 17 — 58

SALINA-SACRED HEART (47) — Jordan Toogood 6-10 6-7 18, Jacob Vandervoort 4-10 4-4 14, Mark Riordan 1-7 2-3 5, Zack Littell 2-4 0-0 4, Joshua Martin 1-4 0-0 3, Brandon Rapp 1-1 0-0 2, Jon Jones 0-1 1-2 1, Jeff Picazo 0-4 0-0 0, Josh Windholz 0-1 0-0 0, Brad Mikinski 0-1 0-0 0, Andrew Diedrich 0-1 0-0 0, Aaron Diedrich 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 15-45 13-16 47.

BEREAN ACADEMY (58) — Josiah Businitz 4-7 2-5 11, Karlan Wiebe 5-11 0-1 10, Lonnie Penner 4-8 0-0 9, Caleb Hoover 1-3 4-6 6, Daniel Claassen 2-2 2-2 6, Cameron Rust 1-3 2-2 4, Cameron Dunn 0-0 4-6 4, Joshua Landis 1-1 0-0 3, Owen Beverlin 1-1 0-5 2, Caleb Veer 0-0 2-4 2, Luke Friesen 0-0 1-2 1, Joshua Hoover 0-0 0-2 0. Totals: 19-36 17-35 58.

3-point goals — SH 4-13 (Vandervoort 2), Berean 3-5 (Busenitz, Penner, Landis 1). Rebounds — SH 32 (Riordan, Mikinski 6), Berean 36 (Beverlin 7). Turnovers — SH 16, Berean 15.