1A boys: Udall falls to Ashland
Panic wasn’t in the vocabulary for top-seeded Ashland, not even trailing Udall by seven in the third quarter Saturday night.
Blue Jays coach Kit Walker said he just told his team to take a deep breath.
“I told them to relax and play our basketball,” he said. “We’ve been down before. I told the kids we just keep doing what we do, settle down and play our basketball. Our defense would take care of itself. I know these guys, and I know their heart.”
The Blue Jays followed directions and capped a perfect 26-0 season with a 67-55 triumph for the Class 1A-Division I championship at White Auditorium.
Senior Jay Luerman kept up his offensive barrage with a game-high 25 points, and would have had more had a three-pointer from beyond half-court at the third-quarter buzzer been allowed.
“I knew the kind of group we had (all but two are seniors), the core of guys coming back from a year ago, so we felt really strong about our core,” Walker said.
It helps to have a player like Luerman, too.
“He’s the best high school basketball player I’ve ever seen,” Walker said. “I’ve been coaching four years, but he’s something special.”
Walker said he mostly tried a box-and-one on Udall’s sharpshooting Michael Propst, but then when Cody Perez got hot for the Eagles, he went to a triangle-and-two.
Propst hit just seven of 20 shots and finished with 16 for Udall (22-4). Perez had 14.
Senior Giles Fox hit seven of eight free throws, many in the fourth quarter, to keep the Blue Jays comfortably ahead. Walker said he had been battling a foot injury left over from football season.
“If there’s anyone you don’t want to put on the line, it’s Giles Fox,” Walker said.
Eagles coach John Mayes said it was nice to shoot 50 percent in the second half, but when Ashland shoots 54 percent, it gets even tougher.
“They made the shots down the stretch,” he said. “It just came down to a few possessions, and the ball just seemed to bounce their way.”
He did like the run, culminating in a 30-23 lead with 4:46 left in the third quarter. Colton Witte scored Udall’s first six points of the quarter as the Eagles briefly pushed away.
But Luerman went to work, getting a dunk and some lay-ins, and suddenly the teams were tied at the end of the third quarter — even without Luerman’s disallowed shot.
Hoxie 55, Burrton 49 —Indians standout Jaxsen Moss hit nine of 15 shots for 24 points, including four three-pointers, and the Indians (20-5) took third place by holding off Burrton (17-9).
Chargers senior Trae Lane scored inside and outside, keeping Hoxie from pulling away. Burrton outshot the Indians, making 47 percent of their shots to Hoxie’s 37.7. Burrton was able to whittle away at Hoxie’s lead to 36-34 after three quarters. But the Indians were able to pull away in the final period.
Sophomore Kade Spresser scored 15 to provide support for Moss.
This story was originally published March 10, 2012 at 5:00 AM with the headline "1A boys: Udall falls to Ashland."