New Bremen defended, and refused to give Marion Local easy looks at the basket. (Press Pros Feature Photos)
Marion survived a shaky rematch with New Bremen to move on to the weekend district finals, while St. Henry’s self-inflicted wounds cost them in the nightcap, and a second half fall to Spencerville.
Wapakoneta, OH – There are a million ways to justify either winning or losing in basketball game of utmost significance – one and done in this instance – and such was the case in Tuesday’s district semi-final doubleheader at Wapakoneta High School.
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In surviving the last seconds of the night’s first game between Marion Local (22-1) and New Bremen (15-9), Marion desperately clung to a 43-41 lead out of a New Bremen timeout hoping that its defense could provide salvation for a lackluster night of Flyer offense.
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In the nightcap, St. Henry got off to a near-perfect start, led by 12 after the first quarter against Spencerville, then saw that lead, and momentum, melt away in the second half as Spencerville outshot, and out-rebounded St. Henry to claim a 51-44 win, and end St. Henry’s season at 17 wins and 7 losses.
“They (New Bremen) played tough and we played tight,” Marion coach Kurt Goettemoeller explained afterwards with a sigh of relief, highly appreciative of New Bremen’s preparation and competitive character.
“They beat us 14-4 on the offensive boards,” St. Henry coach Eric Rosenbeck moaned in explaining how you lose the kind of momentum and energy that the Redskins showed for the first eight minutes of their game with Spencerville. “That’s the story of the game in my opinion.”
Marion Local’s game was a total reversal of their regular season meeting with New Bremen back in January, a game that Marion dominated, 58-23.
Grant Kremer’s three-point shooting in the second half provided the winning margin over a stubborn New Bremen team.
“Just two MAC teams in a tournament setting,” said Goettemoeller. “We were able to do some things in January that they prepared for – turnovers and points in transition – that we couldn’t do tonight.”
Marion led at the half, 20-18, after a lackluster first half against New Bremen’s zone.
But on the opening possession of the second half Grant Kremer canned a three-pointer from the wing to give Marion some breathing room, and a lead that would eventually grow to as much as seven points.
But New Bremen, playing without starting guard Gavin Dicke (ankle), would not go away and kept pecking at Marion’s lead, denying them at the rim on point-blank attempts that Marion simply missed…and by the final minute of the fourth quarter the Cardinals had fought back to a two-point deficit.
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By the :15 second point of the game, both teams had scored at the foul line with Marion leading 43-41, New Bremen had possession of the basketball, and called a timeout to strategize for a final shot that would either tie or win the game.
“We were determined not to give up a three-point shot,” said Goettemoeller.
And when the first option of the set was denied, New Bremen used too much of the remaining time trying to improvise a shot that might at least tie. The clock expired on a Marion Local 43-41 win.
A month prior Goettemoeller had mentioned the importance of three-point specialist Grant Kramer regaining his stroke and confidence, and its impact in situations exactly like that which faced Marion on Tuesday…and Kremer delivered. After his first three to begin the second half, he snapped off two more that proved to be a deciding difference in the game.
“Tournament basketball is tough,” added Goettemoeller, who having taken the bye was playing for the first time in the district round. “Tough to come out and play with the confidence and freedom that you play with during the regular season. They played well tonight, and us…I thought we played a little tight. And we missed a bunch of shots at the rim that we usually make. Hopefully, we can come out on Friday and just let it rip.
St. Henry Sputters On The Boards After A Commanding Start
Thirty minutes later #2 seed St. Henry jumped on #4 seed Spencerville from the opening tip, hitting three of four three-point attempts, scoring twice off turnovers, including a thunderous dunk by Tate Boeckman that put the Redskins’ faithful in a tourney frenzy, and led 19-7 after eight minutes. The had the Bearcats reeling.
But Spencerville (16-7) had beaten St. Henry during the regular season, and did not panic. Instead, they turned to their defense, and a commitment to the boards, holding St. Henry to just 4 points in the second quarter while guard Will Sensabaugh ignited for 8 of the ‘Cats 12 points in the quarter to trim 19-7 to 23-19 by the halftime buzzer.
Tate Boeckman’s baseline dunk brought the crowd to its feet, igniting a 19-7 first quarter start for the Redskins.
The difference?
“They had 14 offensive rebounds in the game, and we had 4,” Eric Rosenbeck explained, post-game. “That was the game. That was the game the first time we played, and we talked about it throughout the week. When you give a talented team that one that many extra shots, and we only get 4, that’s the difference in the game to me.”
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In addition, Spencerville put on a fireworks display from three-point range in the third quarter.
At 4:35 Owen Sensabaugh hit a three-pointer from the wing to give the ‘Cats their first lead, 30-29.
Tournament basketball is tough…”Our area is tough in every sport, and you have to play really good teams to move on.” – Eric Rosenbeck.
A possession later, Grady Smith hit a three from the opposite wing to extend their lead to 33-29.
A moment later Will Sensabaugh hit another three, amping the lead to 39-33.
Owen Sensabaugh and Grady Smith would add yet another 3-point bomb, each, and by quarter’s end the Bearcats had shot their way to a 25-12 advantage for the eight minutes, and a 44-35 lead in the game.
As it turned out, Max Delzeith would drop in a three-pointer for St. Henry, and the ‘Skins would trim Spencerville’s lead to 4 points by the 2:00 point of the game, but the Bearcats put the game away at the foul line, hitting 5 of 8 from the line in the final two minutes to secure their 51-44 win.
Ironically, St. Henry would finish their night at the charity stripe with a miserable 4 of 10 percentage, and a 7-point deficit.
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“We’ve been a great offensive rebounding team all year,” said Rosenbeck, summing up the game and the season. “We actually shot it alright, but we didn’t go get our misses. That’s who we are and that’s what we want to be about. We didn’t get our misses, and they got theirs.
“Obviously they had the big run in the third quarter, but a lot of that had to do with us. In the first quarter we were able to hold them to one shot, get out and run and get some transition looks, ourselves. They’re a great team and we knew it would be a cut-throat game, a game of details. We talked about it during timeouts…about the importance of getting a rebound. We’ll have to watch the film to see why we didn’t, but to give up 14 offensive rebounds when you only get 4…that’s the story of the game in my opinion.”
Marion Local will have to wait another day to see who they play in the district final on Friday, as it will be the winner of Wednesday’s match between #5 seed Ada and #3 seed Allen East.
And St. Henry, while losing a large core of seniors to graduation, will spend the off-season reflecting on a golden opportunity lost for the sake of not doing that which in large part identifies their basketball personality.
“To put the kind of campaign together this year that they did with some injuries, and still hold that standard for what St. Henry basketball is, that’s remarkable and awesome,” Rosenbeck concluded. And it’s sheer disappointment that we won’t get to practice tomorrow when we know we’re one of the top five teams in the state.
“But our area is tough in every sport, and you have to play really good teams to move on. And they’re a very good team.”
St. Henry’s Austin Zimmerman snags a rebound in the first quarter of Tuesday’s district semi-final, but the Redskins couldn’t get enough rebounds in a 51-44 loss to Spencerville.
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