OMAHA – Jack Dahlgren sprinted across the floor, creating a mob chase scene from his Kearney teammates and coaches after he knocked down the game winning three pointer as time expired to lift the Bearcats to a 63-62 victory at Creighton Prep over Millard South Saturday afternoon. Click here to listen to the broadcast replay.
Kearney entered the contest at 0-1 on the season after dropping their opener to Creighton Prep at home just two days prior, falling 53-47. The Junior Jays had stifled the Bearcat offensive rhythm, and never allowed Kearney to get into a regular pace. Coming into Saturday’s matchup, Head Coach Drake Beranek emphasized the importance of getting out to a hotter start.
That was not meant to be, as Millard South had their own wrongs to right as the Patriots fell in an overtime heartbreaker Thursday night to Lincoln North Star. As the Patriots fell to the Navigators on a buzzer-beating triple, a chance to even their record early in the season had a golden opportunity against Kearney.
Revenge was also a factor in the contest, as Kearney fell to Millard South in the opening round of the Class A Football Players just a few weeks prior – ending the Bearcats stellar season on the gridiron.
Millard South opened up with a 7-0 lead in the opening two and half minutes including their post Lance Rucker early with four points. After senior Noah Nordstrom knocked down a triple, Kearney aimed to respond before getting further behind as North Bend Central transfer Asher Endorf knocked down his first points of the game with a three pointer. Millard South extended their first quarter lead 9-6 prior to a timeout from Kearney.
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The Bearcats came out of the timeout more focused and emphatic on the offensive end, relying on tough, physical takes to the hoop as Dahlgren scored an additional four points after a three-point-play prior to the timeout. Karter Lee also got in on the action knocking down a three pointer while Ben Johnson scored to give Kearney a slight edge 13-12 with 2:35 to play in the first. Millard South would remain stagnant, ending the first quarter trailing 21-12 to Kearney.
As the second quarter started, more of the same from Kearney continued as Lee hit another three pointer while his gridiron quarterback Treyven Beckman served up a deep triple to add his first points of the game. Millard South would again look to feed Rucker early and often, as the defensive force on one end turned into a locomotive on the offensive side as he flushed away dunks, rollers, and lay-ins to add eleven points in the second. Kearney paced Rucker’s attack with Ben Johnson, who kept the Bearcats lead with his seven added points including a three pointer of his own.
At halftime, Kearney would continue their lead up 37-30 after scoring 21 and 16 in the first two quarters, while limiting the Patriots to 12 and 18.
Millard South’s hot hand became even hotter exiting halftime, as their potent attack reversed and doubled down into a stalwart defense. Rucker did add four more points in the quarter, but Ben Boudreau began to heat up as he erupted for ten points and command of the Patriot offense. Kearney struggled to find their shooting form, only attempting two free throws (both missed) and having added only eight points in the quarter in total. Millard South however added 17, and with a three pointer by Nordstrom, the Patriots seized the lead to exit the third quarter up 47-45.
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Starting the fourth quarter, Kearney had to exorcise their own offensive demons from the Prep contest and third quarter as Jack Dahlgren aimed to do the work himself. Dahlgren entered with eleven points but would leave no stone unturned as he slashed, crossed, and attacked through the Patriot defense to score an additional eleven in the fourth quarter. Millard South held their lead early in the quarter, but Treyven Beckman’s three pointer gave Kearney new life still trailing by one at 49-48. Kearney was able to muster a slight lead a minute later, only to give the lead back to Millard South 53-52 with 4:12 remaining in the contest.
The Patriots would extend their lead to 55-52, then 59-56 after Kearney battled back to a one possession game and two point contest twice, but Millard South would feed Boudreau or Will Cooper to earn easy scores. With 65 seconds remaining, it appeared Kearney would need Lady Luck’s hand to earn the victory.
Millard South kept out of arm’s reach from Kearney, leading 59-56 after a Dahlgren lay-in and a timeout from Kearney’s Drake Beranek. The timeout was the last opportunity for Kearney to determine how often and who to foul. As Millard South entered double bonus opportunities, the Bearcats would need a few misses while also scoring to get back into the contest.
The misses came regularly, including one that allowed Ben Johnson to fire a deep three pointer down 60-57 to attempt to bring the game back to a tie. The triple missed off the back iron, landed into the offensive hands of Endorf who put up a shot immediately, and scored to bring the game back to a 60-59 lead for Millard South. Not dead yet.
Kearney fouled quickly on the opposite end, but a double bonus walk for sophomore Bernie Anderson of Millard South with less than five seconds to play appeared to be the final nail in the coffin. Anderson sunk the first, but missed the second. Then, a moment in Kearney Basketball history.
Off the miss, Johnson corralled the rebound and immediately fired a pass to Dahlgren, zipping through three defenders before getting to midcourt. After fighting through contact, Dahlgren had one less defender to shake through, stepping away from Boudreau, lifting into the air from the left wing, and as the buzzer sounded – launched a triple that connected to the bottom of the net and sent the Patriots back home at 0-2. Listen to the broadcast replay of Dahlgren’s winner here.
Kearney won on the buzzer beater 63-62 to improve to 1-1 on the season prior to returning home this weekend with a contest against Lincoln High on Friday night. The Bearcats had contributions from Dahlgren with 22, Lee ended with 14 points, Endorf had 10, Johnson wrapped with 9 points, and Beckman had 6.
Listen here to Head Coach Drake Beranek’s postgame thoughts:
