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Ely falls in heartbreaker

Last second shot gives LCA 62-60 win in quarterfinals

Marshall Helmberger
Posted 3/11/19

DULUTH—The Timberwolves’ season came to a heartbreaking end here on Saturday as a bucket at the buzzer gave Lakeview Christian Academy a 62-60 win in the quarterfinal round of the Section 7A boys …

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Ely falls in heartbreaker

Last second shot gives LCA 62-60 win in quarterfinals

Posted

DULUTH—The Timberwolves’ season came to a heartbreaking end here on Saturday as a bucket at the buzzer gave Lakeview Christian Academy a 62-60 win in the quarterfinal round of the Section 7A boys basketball tournament.

Ely had largely dominated the contest throughout, reflecting a marked change from the two teams’ previous meeting this season, which LCA won handily.

“It was a difficult loss especially since we outplayed them for almost the entire game,” said Timberwolves Head Coach Tom McDonald. Ely had led from early on and was staked to a six-point lead with less than three minutes to go in the game. It was the final two minutes that proved Ely’s undoing, however, as the Lions converted a series of Ely turnovers to close the gap as the seconds ticked down. With the game suddenly knotted at 60 with just seconds remaining, the Lions found themselves with the ball.

“We played so well defensively the entire night but in the last possession the ball landed in their player’s hand after we blocked two shot attempts in the last seconds,” said McDonald. “He hit the shot right before the horn went off.”

Playing in the final basketball match of his high school career, senior guard Patrick Vanderbeek led the way offensively once again, with 21 points and five assists. Junior forward Dylan Fenske notched a double-double with 19 points and 13 rebounds, while senior guard Trevor Mattson added 13 points and notched eight rebounds. Senior forward Collen Seliskar tallied five rebounds.

The Wolves will lose eight seniors to graduation this year, including Vanderbeek and Mattson, two of the team’s most consistent scorers. “I think we have enough returning players to be successful, but it depends on how much they want to work on their skills in the off-season,” said McDonald.