Class B: State Tournament Central
Below is a roundup of all of the scores and stories from Thursday’s Class B state quarterfinal games played at Yukon High School on Feb. 28, 2019:
Quarterfinals
Calumet 64 Leedey 57
Calumet best Leedey 64-57 in the first round. Leedey senior Ayden Page scored 16 points in the second half after being held scoreless in the first in a comeback attempt, but Calumet proved to be just too much and held off the Bison in 32 minutes. Calumet will play Paden tomorrow at 10:30 at the State Fairgrounds.
Paden 47 Duke 43
Second-ranked Duke was upset today at the hands of No. 7 Paden. The undefeated Tigers’ first loss came at the worst time on Thursday as Paden’s Lane Edwards hit a go-ahead 3-pointer late in the game. Luke Gunns put the icing on the cake with a pair of free-throws in the final seconds of the game to put the Pirates up by 3. Paden is set to play Calumet at the State Fairgrounds tomorrow at 10:30 a.m.
Kinta 67 Braggs 41
First-ranked Kinta ended Braggs’ Cinderella-story this year with a 67-41 win in the first round of the tournament. Braggs only trailed by 5 points at the half, but the Eagles turned on the jets in the latter half of the game to secure the win. Thomas Fobber came off the bench and finished with 17 points in the late rout for Kinta as it outscored the Wildcats 37-16 in the second half. Kinta will play Lookeba-Sickles tomorrow at 9 p.m. at the State Fairgrounds.
Lookeba-Sickles 40 Big Pasture 34
Lookeba-Sickles came up with the win over Big Pasture after holding the Rangers to just 21 points in the final three quarters of play. The Panthers were led in scoring by Alex Leon with 16 points. Conner Boydston led Big Pasture with 13 in the loss. The Rangers led for the entirety of the first half before a third quarter push from Lookeba-Sickles pushed the Panthers over the edge late in the third. Lookeba is set to play Kinta at 9 p.m. tomorrow at the State Fairgrounds.
Semifinals
Calumet 58, Paden 51
Paden’s heroics fell short as Calumet scored 22 fourth-quarter points en route to an advancement to the Class B State Championship. The Chieftains were led in scoring by Gunner Snowden with 17 points. Ryan Island and Jayden Hicks had 12 and 10, respectively, for Calumet as well. Luke Gunns of Paden led all scores with 18 points and 7 rebounds. Corey Thomas added 15 points for the Pirates. Calumet is set to play Kinta in the State Finals at 7:15 p.m. on Saturday.
Kinta 39, Lookeba-Sickles 34
Time just ran out for Lookeba-Sickles, who trailed by just two points in the final minute of the game in its upset bid over first-ranked Kinta. The Eagles pulled out the win behind great strategic play down the stretch and keeping the ball out of its opponents’ hands. The Eagles are set to play Calumet in the State Finals at 7:15 p.m. on Saturday at Jim Norick Arena.
Championship
Kinta 47, Calumet 44
Kinta defeated Calumet by 3 to claim the B State Title in historic fashion Saturday night at the Jim Norick Arena. Senior Braden Ray hit a trio of 3-pointers in the first quarter and his brother, Cameron, added a pair of his own to put the Eagles up by 3 after the first quarter. Calumet, however, went on to outscore the Eagles 26-18 in the second and third quarters, and led by as many as 10 points in the third. The Eagles came storming back, and with less than a minute to go, Kaleb Stephens drove to the basket and hit the go-ahead shot to seal the State Championship victory for Kinta. Stephens, who struggled shooting in the first half, said that Head Coach Jim Jenson told him to “let it all go” in the second half. “I was just thinking about gold,” said Stephens.