The #15 ranked Whitharral Panthers battled against the #1 Jayton Jaybirds in the State Semifinals of the 1A Division 2 boys basketball playoffs this past Monday night at Frenship Memorial High School, falling 41-36 in a defensive war.
Whitharral came out of the gates strong, exiting the first quarter with a 13-7 lead and entering halftime up 17-16, but Jayton would respond with a big third quarter to take a five-point lead into the fourth quarter and hold on to win the game.
Due to great defensive efforts by both teams, each of them struggled to make shots, but the difference would be the Jaybirds struggled in the first half while the Panthers struggled in the second half, ultimately giving Jayton the upper hand down the stretch.
“We got away from what we truly are,” Panthers Head Basketball Coach Brett Berger said. “We were trying to do a little bit too much and play hero. They still played a heck of a game; I don’t think I would’ve changed anything. Some shots just didn’t fall our way, and so we lost their guys on defense. Overall, I’m proud of these guys.”
Scorers for the Panthers included Nate Sansom with 17 points behind 8/13 field goal shooting, adding seven rebounds and two blocks, Damian Rodriguez with seven points, 10 rebounds, two steals and an assist, Brent Robinson with six points, two rebounds and a steal, Cooper Burns with four points and five rebounds, and Greg Johnson with two points, two rebounds and an assist.
The loss eliminates the Panthers from the playoffs, concluding their season at 25-11 overall with five Gold Balls captured, wrapping up a special year in Coach Berger’s first season as head coach.
“Never once would I think my first year would end like this, just for how far we’ve gone. But I’ve got to give it to these guys, they’re a great group,” Coach Berger said. “I inherited a group of very talented guys. The ending sucks, but those are going to be great men when they grow up.”
Coach Berger would go on to reminisce on the memories made with the senior group of Damian Rodriguez, Nate Sansom, Ayden Dockery, Brent Robinson, Greg Johnson and Christian Reina, noting how proud is of the group and everything they’ve accomplished.