Four semifinal games were played in the Division II-District 2A tournament at the brand new Silverdale Center on Thursday and both of the top seeded teams advanced in both the boys and girls bracket, but there’s no way that Friday’s championship games can top what the overflow crowd witnessed on Thursday.
The top-seeded Notre Dame girls rolled past Collegedale by a 64-26 final while the top-seeded Notre Dame boys had to battle for their life to defeat fifth-seeded Grace Academy by a misleading 40-29 final.
And then in the final two games, the second-seeded Boyd Buchanan girls escaped third-seed Silverdale by a slim 32-30 margin while the second-seeded Boyd Buchanan boys needed two overtimes to defeat third-seeded Silverdale by a 63-62 final.
Friday’s action will included Silverdale-Collegedale in the girls consolation game at 4 followed by the Grace-Silverdale boys consolation games at 5:30. Boyd Buchanan then meets Notre Dame in the two championship contests, the girls set for a 7 p.m. start with the boys to follow around 8:30.
BOYD BUCHANAN GIRLS 32, SILVERDALE 30: It’s one thing for a team to beat another three times in the same season, but even more unlikely to do it a fourth time, but that’s exactly what the Lady Bucs did in the third game of the day.
The Lady Bucs improved to 21-5 with the nail-biting victory while Silverdale falls to 15-15, but victory was anything but easy for Boyd Buchanan.
Boyd Buchanan coach Tracey Walker didn’t hardly know what to say after junior Dani Reeves scored what turned out to be the winning bucket with 11 seconds left.
“We always have a battle with Silverdale, but these girls have found a way to win all year,” Walker said while taking a break in the hall next to the consession stand following the game.
“We called a timeout with 20 seconds left and set up a play intending for Dani to come off a high screen with the intent of making an inside shot or getting fouled. She did both and was fortunate enough to make the shot.
“These kids have done a great job of listening all year and doing what we ask and that was the case tonight. They ran the exact play we called. I’m so happy that she made it. Silverdale has a really good team and it’s tough to beat the same ones four times in a season, but we were able to pull it off,” Walker said.
There was still plenty of time on the clock following Reeves’ shot for the Lady Seahawks to get off a shot.
Kennedy Stinson drove the right wing and put up a shot as the clock wound down. It appeared that possible contact could have been made, but no foul was called and the Silverdale players and coaches were left standing as the officials headed to the dressing room.
It wasn’t the way that Silverdale coach Victor Underwood was hoping the game would end.
“I felt like it was a missed call at the end, but it’s just an unfortunate ending for our kids as they played their hearts out all game,” the Silverdale coach expressed afterward.
“It took us a while to get going offensively, but we put forth our best effort and it just didn’t go our way,” he added.
The game was tied 5-5 when the first quarter ended while a 9-2 edge in the second allowed the Lady Bucs to take a 14-7 lead into the dressing room at halftime.
Reeves scored on a putback to start the second half for a 16-7 lead before Silverdale responded with 10 straight points. A putback by Kamille DeLoach in the last minute put the Lady Bucs ahead at 22-19 with one quarter remaining.
Reeves scored on a drive to start the fourth quarter before Bentlee Stiner scored on a layup and Lauren Kugler knotted the score at 24 with a 3 from the key with 4:24 to play.
It was basically a free throw contest the rest of the way as Silverdale’s Tori Gibson sank six straight in the final 90 seconds. The Lady Bucs responded by making six of 10 in that same stretch.
Reeves had a chance to give the Lady Bucs some breathing room with her team up two with 24 seconds left, but she missed both charity tosses. Gibson then made her final two with 22.6 seconds left to knot the score at 30-30, setting the stage for Reeves shot at the end.
Reeves was the only Lady Buc in double figures as she finished with 12 points. Sarah Durham and DeLoach both followed with seven each.
Gibson was tops for Silverdale with a dozen points while Kugler added seven and Kelsie Johnson five.
Silverdale had an unofficial 27-20 rebounding edge as Gibson snagged 13 to lead her team. Reeves had six and DeLoach five for the Lady Bucs.
BOYD BUCHANAN BOYS 63, SILVERDALE 62 (2 OT): Most folks felt like there was no way the final boys game could top what they had just seen in the second girls game, but the guys from Silverdale and Boyd Buchanan had other ideas.
It was a great game where neither team deserved to lose and one that complete wore out Boyd Buchanan’s Josh Templeton.
“I’m ready for bed,” he joked shortly after the game finally ended.
“That was an unbelievable high school basketball game as both teams made big plays and big shots all over the court. These guys are veterans and have played a lot of basketball together, so they knew where the other was. Jacob Shockley was in the right spot at the right time and was able to finish it off, but Caden did a great job of getting the ball in his hands after slipping on his drive.
“I was sweating bullets at the end, but I was proud that our guys kept their composure and didn’t waiver or get down at any point. But it was a great battle and I’m so proud of my guys for winning it,” Templeton added.
Silverdale coach Slater Belew couldn’t do anything but praise his team for another outstanding effort.
“We got smacked in the mouth, but I’m really proud of the way we overcame adversity. It stinks to lose a game like this, but our bench kept us in the game after we had two starters foul out.
“Brett Wright has had a phenomenal season and he proved it again tonight, but that was also a huge shot that Houston Holland made.
“The good news is that our season continues, but what we developed character wise tonight goes much further than any basketball game,” Belew added.
Silverdale scored eight of the last nine points in the first quarter for a 12-5 lead at the first break before the Buccaneers came back to take a 26-23 lead at intermission.
A 3 from Boyd’s Jacob Shockley with 3:30 left in the third knotted the score at 33 before Silverdale finished the quarter on a 7-1 run for a six-point lead with one quarter remaining.
A three-point play by Shockley and a 3 by Ryan Lopez in the first minute of the fourth knotted the score again at 40, setting the stage for an incredible ending where it was a shame that either team lost.
Nathan Miller sank the first of two free throws with 30.5 seconds left to give Boyd a 49-47 lead before Caiden Botts sank a jumper from the wing at buzzer to send the game into overtime.
The Silverdale students when crazy when he made the shot and they thought it was a game-winning 3, but they returned to their seats as the game continued.
The Bucs had three leads in the first extra period, the last time at 57-53 following two free throws by Lopez with 46 seconds left.
Brodie Johnston had a chance to put a little icing on the cake, but missed both of his free throws with 17 seconds left.
Wright, who led both teams with 27 points that included four from long range, made his last 3 with 11.2 seconds left and was fouled. He completed the four-point play and the game went into another four-minute overtime after Shockley missed from the key at the buzzer.
The big man may have missed the first time, but he made up for it with the game-winner at the end of the second extra period.
Houston Holland made a 3 with 11 seconds left to give Silverdale a 62-61 lead, but the Bucs came down the floor with the ball in Caden Johnson’s hands. The spunky senior drove toward the bucket on the right side and lost his footing, but alertly shoveled the ball to Shockley in the middle of the lane for the game-winner with 2.3 seconds left.
Cline’s heave from 75 feet was short of the mark as the game ended with the Bucs ahead by one.
Shockley scored 18 points and Johnson 17 to lead the winning Bucs while Lopez was also in double figures with 10 points.
Wright was tops for Silverdale with 27 while Kennedy Okpara and Cameron Mullins added eight and seven points, respectively.
Silverdale also had an unofficial 36-19 advantage in rebounds as Okpara grabbed nine while Cline and Mullins both had seven. Nathan Miller and Johnson both had four to lead the Bucs.
Boyd Buchanan is now 16-10 while Silverdale is now 16-12.
GIRLS SEMIFINAL SUMMARY
BOYD BUCHANAN 5 9 8 10 -- 32
SILVERDALE 5 2 12 11 -- 30
BOYD BUCHANAN (32) – McFarland, Winston 2, Jal. Sanders 4, Durham 7, Jad. Sanders, DeLoach 7, Dani Reeves 12, Robertson.
SILVERDALE (30) – Bledsoe 2, Stiner 4, Kugler 7, Sullivan, Stinson, Tori Gibson 12, Johnson 5.
3-POINT GOALS: Boyd Buchanan 1 (Durham); Silverdale 3 (Kugler, Gibson, Johnson).
BOYS SEMIFINAL SUMMARY
BOYD BUCHANAN 5 21 8 15 8 6 -- 63
SILVERDALE 12 11 17 9 8 5 -- 62
BOYD BUCHANAN (63) – Miller 3, Caden Johnson 17, Moore 3,
Wamack, Ryan Lopez 10, Jones 7, Johnston 5, Nolan, Jacob Shockley 18.
SILVERDALE (62) – Botts 6, Okpara 8, Cline 6, Delashmitt, Mullins 7, Brett Wright 27, Holland 3, Hardaway, Bambrey 5.
3-POINT GOALS: Boyd Buchanan 4 (Lopez, Jones, Johnston, Shockley); Silverdale 9 (Cline 2, Mullins, Wright 4, Holland, Bambrey).
(Email John Hunt at nomarathonmoose@gmail.com)