By TYLER HENRY
Lead Sportswriter - Salina Post
Sacred Heart’s boys battled on Saturday but couldn’t overcome a slow shooting night, falling to Wichita Classical 59-52 in overtime of the sub-state championship game.
This was a thrilling back-and-forth contest that saw the Saints lead for the majority of the runtime, but the Knights fought back to keep it close and force bonus basketball down the stretch.
Both teams struggled from the floor in the first quarter, with Sacred Heart scoring their first points more than four minutes in.
The first quarter turned into a three-point shooting contest with three a side, leading to an 11-9 Classical lead at the end of one.
In the second, three pointers slowed as free throws became the special of the day, with the Saints connecting on 4-6 to take a 25-19 lead into the locker room.
Sacred Heart wasted no time undoing that work, rattling off a 15-6 run near the open of the third quarter and keeping things close from there to the finish line.
Down three in the fourth, Luke Koland buried a clutch triple to tie the game at 42 apiece, and after holding for and missing the final shot of regulation, that was the score entering overtime.
Classical opened the bonus frame on fire, taking a six point lead on back-to-back threes to start the period. Sacred Heart cut it to one possession on three occasions but the damage was done and the Saints held on for the win.
Tylan Sinclair (21), Mack Dolloff (15), and Kellen Neisler (12) led Classical in the win on a night where seven different Saints scored.
Noah Hines (16), Will Tuttle (15), and Maddox Wells (13) did their best to keep up, but the rest of Sacred Heart’s supporting cast scored just six total points on the night.
Wichita Classical improves to 20-4 on the year, and will join Sterling, Berean Academy, TMP, St. Mary’s, SMC, Rossville, and Douglas at state.
For Sacred Heart, another bittersweet but still stellar campaign comes to a close at 23-4.
You can watch this game on-demand any time below.