KEARNEY – Grit and grind. Defense reigned supreme in the A-2 District Semifinal between #2 Kearney and #3 Lincoln Pius at Kearney High School on Saturday night, as the Bearcats lead from start to finish and earned their first postseason win since 2020 with a 42-40 victory over the Thunderbolts. Click here to listen to the broadcast replay.
The Bearcats earned the #2 seed in the A-2 District by working up a 16-7 record while Pius sat at 14-10. The two teams had been on different trajectories since their previous matchup at the end of January, where the Thunderbolts rolled into Kearney and closed out a 62-54 win on the road. Since that win, Pius went 1-5 in their final six games – including a loss to 6-17 Fremont – to drop from 8th in PowerPoints to 16th.
All signs pointed to a close matchup from the outset of the game, as Pius and Kearney fans poured into Kearney High School for a Saturday night showdown.
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The opening tip-off was controlled by Lincoln Pius, but as the first game went many storylines stayed the same. Kearney took an early lead opening up with a three pointer by Jack Dahlgren after a lay-in put in by Ben Johnson. After his score, Pius added to their score from the charity stripe as Adam Searcey added three points in the quarter. The second leading scorer in the HAC Treyson Anderson for Pius was quiet in the first half, only having two points coming in the first quarter. Johnson nailed a long triple to keep Kearney front, as the Bearcats stuffed away Pius on defensive possessions leading 10-5 at the end of the first quarter.
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The Bearcats would again control the second, but had help from numerous hands as five different Kearney players would contribute. Karter Lee and Treyven Beckman each hit three pointers, while Dahlgren, Colt Straka, and Endorf found success working inside for jumpers, lay-ins, and foul shots. Excellent passing from Dahlgren opened up Straka on an attack toward the basket, as Pius was outmatched 12-9 in the second. The Thunderbolts did get some help from Nate Schauer who added three points, but the ‘Bolts continued to trail heading into halftime 22-14.
KHS BBB
As the third quarter stared, Kearney’s hot shooting began to warm up with Karter Lee hitting two three-pointers and Dahlgren added a triple of his own. Endorf was working well inside adding in four points, but Pius began to surge back late in the quarter. After the hot start by Kearney, the Bearcats went cold in the final two minutes of the third giving the Thunderbolts a slight run as Anderson pounded inside for four points and Jackson Kessler earned four, with his final lay-in falling before the third quarter buzzer sounded. Kearney still led entering the fourth quarter up 35-29.
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Pius’ run continued in the fourth quarter, extending to a 9-0 run until the five minute mark of the fourth quarter. Anderson once again pounded inside to find his tenth point, while Schauer extended for four more points. Kearney’s Lee stopped the run with a jumper, while Endorf also added two and Johnson knocked down a free throw. Up 40-38 with less than a minute to play, Kearney’s defense stood tall playing clean and preventing easy shots removing Pius from inside looks.
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As the clock ran down, a late steal by Kearney turned into a new possession for the Bearcats as Lee knocked down two clutch free throws on a one-and-one opportunity to extend the lead to 42-38. Kessler added one final roll, but Pius never saw the ball again as Kearney earned the 42-40 victory at home and moved to 17-7 on the season.
KHS BBB
The win gives Kearney a chance at the A-2 District Title on Monday night, heading to #1 Millard North as the Mustangs stomped out Omaha Northwest by thirty points earlier Saturday evening.
The Bearcats had contributions from Lee leading all scorers with 13 points, while Endorf had 10, Dahlgren ended with 8, Johnson had 6, Beckman wrapped with 3, and Straka finished with 2.
Pius had contributions from Schauer with 12, Anderson with 10, Kessler wrapped with 9, Searcey had 7, and Drew Drake had 2. The Thunderbolts never connected on a three pointer in the contest.
Hear from Head Coach for Kearney Drake Beranek in his postgame thoughts after the win:
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