The clash of the Titans. The unstoppable force meeting the immovable object. D1 recruit vs D1 recruit. Whatever cliche you want to use, this was the premier matchup in Southern Indiana basketball this year. #1 Linton-Stockton battled #5 Brownstown Central for the chance to go to Gainbridge Fieldhouse next Saturday to battle for that all too elusive Indiana high school boys basketball state championship. Linton would hang on and punch their ticket to state 64-56 but it wasn’t always easy.
Here’s How It All Went Down
Linton started off with some heavy ball pressure which forced Brownstown into early turnovers and bad shots. The game would heat up from there as both teams would trade 3’s and then it was the Logan Webb show. Webb would score 15 of Linton’s 18 1st quarter points leading the Miners to a 18-14 lead after 1.
Jack Benter would try and keep pace with the Miners and get back into the game hitting an acrobatic 3 early in the second. Linton however would attack and get the ball into the paint scoring some easy buckets at the rim. Joey Hart would pick up his 2nd foul with about 6 minutes to go and have to sit. It wouldn’t make a difference though as the Logan Webb show continued. With 4:19 to go in the first half and Linton on an 8-2 run with Joey Hart on the bench, Brownstown would have to call a timeout and regroup. The Braves were extremely bothered by the length and athleticism on Linton. They employed a 1-2-2 half-court trap with lengthy Braden Walters at the point that the Braves simply could not get around. Logan Webb would score an incredible 22 points out of Lintons’s 34 in the first half. Brownstown only managed 20 thanks to the stifling defense of the Miners.
Linton would continue to add on to their lead early in the 3rd quarter, building it up to 19 on a slick and 1 from Joey Hart and yet another 3 from Logan Webb. Webb was simply unconscious tonight. Brownstown actually got some very good looks in the third but could not knock them down. They would cut the lead down to 15 on a Jack Benter put-back buzzer beater. The third quarter was a bit more even with Linton winning that stanza 9-8.
Behind the hot shooting of Jack Benter, Brownstown would actually start to make it a game in the beginning of the fourth. Benter would knock down a couple 3’s and Linton would struggle to make free throws. With a little under 5 minutes to go Linton’s lead would be cut down to 10 solely on the play of Jack Benter. Brownstown would force a timeout from Linton and get the Miners lead back down into single digits on a James Harden-esque step back jumper from Chace Coomer. These Braves definitely did not have any quit in them. With 2:45 left in the game it was Linton 56, Brownstown 48. Linton would start to collapse down the stretch thanks to some intense pressure from Brownstown. A Chace Coomer 3 would cut the lead to 5 with 1:18 to go. Then that pressure forced another turnover and Benter would hit another 3 to bring the Braves to within 2 with just over a minute left of game-time. Just when it looked like Linton was down and out on the ropes Joey Hart would do as hes done throughout the season and take over. He put the lead back up to 5 on a sick and 1 and then skyed for a defensive board and hit 1 of 2 at the line to ice the game. Linton would go on to win 64-56. The Miners will move on to Gainbridge Fieldhouse next Saturday to vie for the state championship against Fort Wayne Blackhawk.
Leading Scorers
- Jack Benter – Brownstown Central – 35
- Logan Webb – Linton – 29
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Story will be updated with a full photo gallery soon.
