The smell of popcorn wafted through the entrance to Jack Butcher Arena as the lines of ravenous fans marched their way in to watch the rematch of the Buggy Bowl. They had been lined up for hours outside waiting and pining for their school to win. They were treated to one heck of a Sectional Title game as North Daviess comes from behind to beat perennial 1a powerhouse Barr-Reeve. This was Hoosier Hysteria at it’s finest.
Here’s How It All Went Down
It was a tale of two halves…
Barr-Reeve came out hot and North Daviess couldn’t buy a bucket. The Vikings 1-3-1 hybrid match-up zone just baffled the Cougars and when they did get an open shot they couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn(pun intended). The Cougars did manage to keep Hagen Knepp in check the first half, which is a very tall task, with some great individual defense. With so much attention paid to Knepp, the rest of the Vikings squad stepped up to the plate and delivered. Led by guard Kayden Graber the Vikings were able to hit some timely shots. The Cougars looked to regain the momentum when Jaylen Mullen hit a spectacular buzzer beating 3 from the corner to end the 1st quarter, but again came out cold and flat in the second quarter. Barr-Reeve looked as if they were going to cruise to another Sectional title leading the Cougars 18-9 at the end of the first half.
Remember when I said it was a tale of two halves, I wasn’t kidding. The second half started pretty much the same way as the first, just switch the teams. North Daviess came out red hot and started the 2nd half with an 8-2 run and regained all the momentum. They were finally getting all those open shots that didn’t fall in the first to hit the bottom of the net. Barr-Reeve seemed bewildered both on offense and defense. The Vikings offense often stalled into one on one plays from Hagen Knepp and he just could not finish through the Cougars renewed energy on defense. Lance Wilson was instrumental in the Cougars second half comeback hitting big shot after big shot. North Daviess finally took the lead, after trailing the whole game, with 4:16 to go in the fourth quarter and would never relinquish it. Barr-Reeve cut the lead down to 2 on a incredible 3-point jumper from way downtown by Kayden Graber, but they would get no closer the rest of the way, as North Daviess was just too hot down the stretch. The Cougars won their first Sectional Championship in 6 years by the tally of 35-29. They outscored the Vikings 26-11 in the second half.
We caught up with Head Coach Brent Dalrymple and leading scorer for the Cougars Lance Wilson after the game.
Author’s Note
This was a very fun game to watch and the atmosphere inside Jack Butcher Arena was electric. I’ve never experienced a game so loud in any high school gymnasium. Sometimes I cant believe I get to call this a job. This is Indiana Basketball!
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