BOWLING GREEN — Shelby is one win away from breaking history set 67 years ago.
After an 11-point halftime lead deteriorated, the Whippets held off a furious second-half rally from Lima Shawnee to win a Division II regional semifinal game, 59-50, Thursday night at Bowling Green State University.
Shelby (24-2) claimed its spot in Saturday’s Division II regional final game back at BGSU against Lutheran West at 4 p.m.
The Longhorns (24-2) defeated Toledo Central Catholic, 54-30, during Thursday’s first regional semifinal game.
Boasting a program record for the most wins in a single season, the Whippets are seeking their first regional title since 1957, a team led by the legendary Larry Siegfried.
Whippets ‘like to run,’ says Gallaway
Shelby’s Casey Lantz energized the Stroh Center with a two-handed slam to begin the game. The jam marked the first two of 10 points Lantz scored in the first quarter.,
The energy dispersed amongst the rest of his teammates who quickly established their flow offensively, leading Shawnee 19-5 after eight minutes.
Shelby coach Greg Gallaway said establishing a lead early into the action was huge for his team.
“That’s what we’ve done well this year. We like to run.
“He (Alex Bruskotter) does a great job getting the ball out of his hands quick and Casey runs the floor well. Issaiah (Ramsey) runs the floor well and Brayden (DeVito) does too. Bryson (Baker) gets the ball out quick.”
Points continued to come in bunches for Shelby throughout the second period. The Whippets built their largest lead of the night (16) with 6:05 remaining in the first half.
After struggling to find a rhythm on offense, the Indians finished the first half on a 7-2 mini-run, but trailed the Whippets at the break, 27-16.
Gallaway said a strong start to the game was one of his team’s keys entering the matchup.
“We knew, against a good team in a neutral environment, that’s something you’ve got to do,” he said. “Credit to our guys for getting off to a fast start.”
Bertke scores 41 of Indians’ 50 points
Shawnee 6-5 sophomore Beckett Bertke was responsible for all the Indians’ scoring in the first half with 16 points. He finished with 41 points, 12 rebounds, and drained 17-of-32 field goals.
Bertke averaged 22 points a game this season and was a first-team, All-Northwest Ohio selection in Division II.
“Beckett (Bertke) is really special. He’s a good player,” Gallaway said. “They’re going to be playing in these games the next couple of years. Credit them for coming out of halftime and making runs, but I also credit our guys for stopping them.
“I thought at the right times, we made those stops and we got buckets on the other end. That’s what we’ve relied on all year — seniors on our team making plays down the stretch.”
Highlight reel
Shelby holds off Indians’ second-half surge
By the end of the third quarter, the Whippets watched their 11-point dwindle to single digits. The Indians outscored Shelby, 18-16, in the third frame, but trailed 43-34 with eight minutes to play.
Bertke spearheaded a 10-0 burst that brought Shawnee within 43-41 with 6:11 showing.
But momentum began shifting back to Shelby as Bruskotter, one of eight finalist for Ohio’s Mr. Basketball award, and Ramsey outscored the Indians 10-2 over the next four minutes to boost the margin back to 53-43.
Bruskotter, a Wright State University commit, said he knew he’d need to control the game and limit Shawnee’s possessions in the final quarter.
“We wanted to make them grind it out for stops and kind of use the clock as our friend,” he said.
“When they (Shawnee) went on that run, before that I was seeing driving lanes but I was passing it just to try and get movement. Once it got to two, I figured we needed to stretch the lead a little more and started attacking those driving lanes.”
Bruskotter led the Whippets with a team-high 17 points to go along with 12 rebounds, four assists and two steals.
DeVito contributed 13 points, while Lantz added 12. Ramsey and Bryson Baker combined for 15, and Karsen Homan scored a bucket.
Whippets reach first Elite Eight since 1957
As Shelby buckled down during the game’s final minutes, it never allowed Shawnee to cut the lead to closer than seven-points.
Gallaway noted his team’s “relentless” efforts to finish the game with resiliency.
“As a group, we define (relentless) as being able to overcome obstacles and on the floor, it’s a next play mentality,” he said. “It wasn’t a panic mode for our guys because we’ve been in that situation before.
“It’s a credit to guys like him (Bruskotter) and the rest of our veteran group to just bounce back when we needed to.”