Class C-2: Ravenna, Grand Island CC, Ponca, Elwood-Murdock notch wins

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Class C-2 boys tournament results:

Ravenna 69, Perkins County 57: Fourteen points in a heartbeat, 29 points in the first quarter.

It almost came too easy for top-ranked Ravenna in the early going Thursday. 

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=The Elmwood-Murdock bench explodes with cheers in the last few seconds of the Knights' win over Heartland on Thursday. (Heidi Hoffman)

=The Elmwood-Murdock bench explodes with cheers in the last few seconds of the Knights' win over Heartland on Thursday. (Heidi Hoffman)

“Maybe we were thinking we we’d put up some big numbers,” coach Paul Beranek said. “I was thinking that, too.

“But you’re not going to be able to do that against a Larry Pritchett-coached team.”

Perkins County’s Pritchett, coaching his final game after 32 years with the Plainsmen, patrolled the sideline for the final time in the Class C-2 opener at Southeast. His unranked Plainsmen, who trailed 31-13 in the first half and 45-26 early in the third quarter, threatened to trim the deficit to single digits over the closing minutes.

Curt Softley scored 15 of his game-high 18 points in the second half for Perkins County (13-10) and Drew Mayer added 17 points.

For Ravenna, Greg Nissen (17 points and 11 rebounds) and Adam Mingus (13 points and 12 assists) both notched double-doubles.

The Blue Jays (24-1) forced 25 turnovers, six of those coming in a three-minute span of the first quarter. Ravenna converted each for points.

Grand Island CC 43, Deshler 32

For 3½ quarters, Deshler’s Brady Firley was everywhere Spencer Fahey dared to go.

What the Grand Island Central Catholic guard needed was a disguise.

With blood from Firley’s cut lip ending up on Fahey’s jersey, the junior had to ditch his white undershirt and changed from No. 12 to 14 in the late going. With his new look, he broke free for a big three-pointer and added six free throws down the stretch to cap the Crusaders’ stunning 43-32 come-from-behind win in Class C-2 action Thursday at Lincoln Southeast.

Sixth-ranked Central Catholic (16-7) outscored Deshler 22-1 down the stretch, ditching memories of a 4-for-26 shooting performance through three quarters and rattling the second-ranked Dragons for one of the few times all season.

Deshler (22-2) seemed in command, leading 31-21 as late as with 5½ minutes left.

“Usually when you’re 4-of-26, you’re down about 25,” Central Catholic coach Bill Gavers said. “It was a great collective effort, especially mentally, to be behind the eight ball like that and battle back.”

The momentum made a sudden swing once Dan Werner, Deshler’s 6-foot-6 senior center, fouled out with 5:07 to play.

Sam Bolton drew Werner’s fifth foul while driving for a bucket. Bolton missed the ensuring free throw, but Lucas Wagoner got the rebound and scored to cut the deficit to five.

Fahey’s three-pointer followed and he went to the free-throw line to give Central Catholic its first and only lead. Fahey finished with 20 points.

Deshler’s Jens Scholl, who came in averaging 21 points a game, had just 10. His only points of the fourth quarter came at the free-throw line, where the Dragons were just 3-of-11.

“Too many points left out there,” Deshler coach Ryan Hogue said.

--Todd Henrichs

Ponca 55, Oakland-Craig 41

Brent Smith wasn’t 100 percent, but he still was the perfect balance for Ponca teammate Garrett Peterson on Thursday.

Smith, the senior guard who missed Ponca’s district final because of illness, scored 17 points and Peterson added 21 as the third-ranked Indians defeated unranked Oakland-Craig in a rematch of last year’s Class C-2 final.

Nine of Smith’s points came in the third quarter as Ponca (22-2) pushed what was a three-point lead late in the second period into double digits.

“We needed to grind it out, and that’s what we did,” Ponca coach Bob Hayes said.

Some of the Indians’ best work came defensively. The Knights’ Zach Rosenboom scored 22 points on 10-for-11 shooting, but the other Oakland-Craig starters combined for only six points.

Perimeter baskets were at a premium, as without Rosenboom and Ryan Fleischman’s work inside, Oakland-Craig (16-9) was just 3-of-28 from the field. The Knights’ turnovers led directly to 13 Ponca points.

“We didn’t have things balanced for us tonight, and Ponca did,” said Oakland-Craig coach Aaron Meyer, whose team lost to Ponca in last year’s title game.

“Ponca’s a tough team to match up with,” he said.

Elmwood-Murdock 45, Heartland 41

It’s never going to be a perfect trade when you replace Kevin Zoz at the free-throw line.Stay with JournalStar.com for updates.

Yet with Thursday’s Class C-2 first-round game still in doubt, Elmwood-Murdock coach Terry Warner had to call on someone to replace Zoz, an 80 percent free-throw shooter who was forced from the game with leg cramps.

Warner called on Clay Carlton, a senior who calmly sank two free throws with 24.8 seconds left to help preserve the eighth-ranked Knights’ win.

“His sophomore year, we had to do the same thing,” Warner said. “I’ve watched him come through in pressure situations.

“There’s not much more you can say about our senior leadership tonight.”

The Knights virtually led throughout, but those times when the fourth-ranked Huskies challenged, Elmwood-Murdock sought answers from its seniors.

In the first half, Trent Shrader scored four straight points to end the half after Heartland (19-4) had grabbed its first lead. Then down the stretch, after the Huskies had erased an eight-point deficit, the Knights went quickly to Shrader, whose basket with 36 seconds to play put Elmwood-Murdock (21-3) ahead for good.

Junior Jon Luetchens paced the Knights with 13 points. Ned Goertzen scored 17 for Heartland, which hit just 5 of 22 three-pointers.