ST. JOHN BOYS MIDWINTER CLASSIC
MONDAY—St. John 60, Reno County 29; Larned 69, Central Plains 31; TUESDAY—Wichita Sunrise 54, Reno County 16; Nickerson 60, Macksville 54, OT; THURSDAY—Wichita Sunrise 52, St. John 27; Nickerson 48, Larned 44
FRIDAY—Macksville (6-5) vs. Central Plains, 8
SATURDAY—5th—Reno County vs. Macksville/Central Plains winner—noon; 3rd—St. John (4-8) vs. Larned (5-6)—4; 1st—Wichita Sunrise (10-2) vs. Nickerson (2-10)—8 NICKERSON 48, LARNED 44
ST. JOHN — Giant-killer Nickerson pulled back-to-back shockers with a 48-44 upset over Larned in Thursday's semifinal game in the Midwinter Basketball Classic.
Nickerson's point guard Phillipe Manga (13), Carson Linn (13) and Matt Crossman (11) scored in double figures.
The Panthers built a 44-33 lead before Larned rallied with a game-ending 11-4 scoring run. Larned’s Layton Crosby scored seven points, Ethan Haas hit a 3-pointer and Dillan Smith hit a free throw. The Indians converted four of nine free throws in the fourth quarter.
Nickerson made four of 11 free throws in the final 90 seconds, twice getting second chances on rebounds off missed foul shots. Crossman hit three free throws and Raef Tatro added a free throw.
"We battled back from 11 down and cut it to one possession,” said Larned coach Jerrod Smith. “We didn't convert some free throws and easy shots in the fourth quarter."
Crosby led the Indians with 17 points and Andreus Tucker added 13 points.
Nickerson (2-10) surprised Macksville 60-54 in overtime, then avenged a loss to Larned. Nickerson plays Wichita Sunrise for the championship. Larned plays St. John for third place.
"Winning a basketball game was a boost for Nickerson,” said Smith. “Manga is stable. He's settling into the leader for them. That's what they've lacked."
Nickerson 11 7 17 13 — 48
Larned 11 5 9 17 — 44
NICKERSON (2-10)—Manga 6 0-3 13, Linn 5 0-2 13, Crossman 3 5-8 11, Tatro 2 1-2 6, Fast 0 1-2 1, Broomfield-Tate 1 0-0 2, Damato 1 0-0 2, Totals 18 7-17 48
LARNED (5-6)—Crosby 7 2-5 17, Tucker 6 2-5 13, Smith 2 2-4 7, Haas 2 0-2 5, Stelter 1 0-0 2, Totals 18 6-16 44
3-pointers—N 5 (Linn 3, Manga 1, Tatro 1); L 4 (Crosby 1, Tucker 1, Smith 1, Haas 1)
WICHITA SUNRISE 52, ST. JOHN 27
ST. JOHN — Marco Moreau (13) and Mischa Mikhailou (12) and Luke Beougher (11) scored in double figures to power Wichita Sunrise past St. John 52-27 in Thursday's semifinal in the Midwinter Classic. Sunrise forced the issue with fullcourt pressure that created turnovers. Sunrise will play Nickerson in Saturday's championship.
Elijah Delp paced the Tigers with 13 points and aggressive rebounding and defense.
Sunrise 8 10 18 14 — 52
St. John 0 6 11 10 — 27
SUNRISE (10-2)—Moreau 6 0-0 13, Mikhailou 5 2-2 12, Lopera 1 0-0 2, Williams 3 0-0 6, Beougher 5 0-0 11, Hart 1 0-0 2, Keller 1 0-0 2, O'Garro 2 0-0 4, Totals 24 4-4 52
ST.JOHN (4-8)—Elijah Delp 3 7-8 13, Woolf 4 0-0 8, Smith 1 0-0 3, Dunn 1 1-2 3, Totals 9 8-10 27
3-pointers—S 2 (Moreau 1, Beougher 1); SJ 6 (Smith 1)
