HAYS — It was all about staying alive, when Great Bend High School went up against arch-rival Hays on Thursday night in an opening-round game of a Class 5A sub-state basketball tournament.
In this win-or-go-home scenario, Hays uncorked a 19-4 run in the second quarter to build a 31-11 halftime lead and went on to register a 49-20 victory over the Panthers.
“Right now, it’s survive and advance,” Great Bend head coach Chris Battin said. “I thought we came out and played pretty good the first four or five minutes.
“Unfortunately, they went on a big run. It seemed like when they started the second quarter, they got going and we couldn’t stop Werth inside.”
Great Bend, which closes its season at 5-15, had no answer in trying to contain Indians post player Brady Werth, who scored a game-high 19 points, let alone putting some points on the board itself.
“He was a man possessed,” said Battin of the 6-foot-5 Werth. “He’s got great hands and good skills. They threw it over the top to him a couple times, and he knocked down some big shots.
“(Werth’s) only a sophomore and he’s going to be around for a long time. They’re a good basketball team. They did exactly what they had to do to win.”
Hays (13-7) advances to play Liberal in Saturday’s sub-state final.
Great Bend beat Hays 48-40 at Panther Fieldhouse in January. But things turned sour down the stretch as the Panthers lost eight straight to end the season.
“It’s unfortunate,” Battin said. “Our seniors gave us everything they had and there wasn’t a time that they complained.
“They worked every day and there were times when we could have given up, but never did. Shots weren’t falling, and things weren’t going our way.”
Early on, Great Bend’s Trey Ibarra hit a 3-pointer and Bryce Beck made a jumper in the lane, tying the game at 5 during the opening two minutes, 16 seconds.
Post player Wyatt Bayless scored on a baseline jumper to carve the margin to 10-7 at the one-minute mark in the first quarter before Werth’s power move gave the Indians a 12-7 lead at the end of the period.
Hays scored the first five points of the second quarter for a 17-7 lead. After Ethan Henderson’s baseline jumper cut the margin to 17-9 at the 4:24 mark, the Indians, kick-started by a Derek Bixenman 3-pointer, went on a 14-2 run to take command.
GBHS managed only nine points in the second half, where a running clock was implemented near the three-minute mark with Hays’ lead growing to 48-18.

HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL
Class 5A Sub-State
Tournament

BOYS

Thursday

First round

At Hays

Hays High School 49, Great Bend 20
GREAT BEND (5-15)
    Trey Ibarra 1 2-2 5, Chad Touslee 0 1-2 1, Brock Ibarra 1 0-0 3, Bryce Beck 1 1-2 3, Dillon Reiser 0 0-0 0, Gabe Joiner 0 0-0 0, Jayce Brack 0 0-0 0, Ethan Henderson 2 0-0 4, Shade Wondra 0 0-0 0, Wyatt Bayless 1 0-0 2, Josh Lutz 0 0-0 0, Nick Warren 0 2-2 2. Totals 6 6-8 20.
HAYS (13-7)
    Kyle Niernberger 3 0-2 6, Nick Petz 1 1-2 4, Isaiah Nunnery 0 0-0 0, Adam Deterding 1 1-3 3, Lane Clark 1 0-1 2, Layne Downing 0 0-0 0, Kenny Rounkles  0 0-0 0, David Cardinal 0 0-0 0, Kade Parker 1 0-0 2, Derek Bixenman 3 5-7 12, Hunter Gonzales 0 1-2 1, Brady Werth 8 3-6 19. Totals 18 11-23 49.
GBHS    7     4    5    4   —   20
Hays    12   19   11   7   —   49
    Three-point goals — Great Bend 2 (T. Ibarra, B. Ibarra); Hays 2 (Bixenman, Petz). Total fouls — Hays 20, Great Bend 15. Fouled out — None.