EFFINGHAM — There’s always a first time for everything.
For the St. Anthony Bulldogs, the first time was not only advancing to the championship game of the Effingham-Teutopolis Christmas Classic but winning it.
“It’s always nice to win a tournament,” head coach Cody Rincker said. “Have that experience and confidence going.”
St. Anthony (13-2) defeated rival Teutopolis (9-4), 60-49, to capture the title.
Rincker noted that a championship berth was not on his mind when the pairings were announced.
“When I saw the pairings, I felt confident about the first two,” he said. “Our hope was to get to that semifinal game and once you got there, give it your best shot and let the chips fall.”
The two rivals typically play once during the calendar season.
This year, they gave their fanbases an extra one.
“What I love about the rivalry is when the ball is in play and within these four lines, it’s ultra-competitive,” Rincker said. “Guys are at each other. It’s physical, tough and probably a little bit personal, but when the game is over, you’re shaking hands, laughing and you’re putting it beside you.
“That’s what makes rivalries healthy.”
Effingham High School Gymnasium was filled to the brim on Saturday night.
The Bulldogs led by double-digits, 17-7, at the end of the first quarter.
Wooden Shoes senior Alex Kremer started the contest with two points. St. Anthony junior Keenan Griffith followed with a basket, tying the game.
The Bulldogs converted seven free throws after that, leading 9-4, before T-Town senior Mick Niebrugge made a layup while drawing a foul that cut the lead to three points. Niebrugge then made his foul shot, trimming the St. A lead to two.
Bulldogs senior Ryan Schmidt then made one of his two free throw attempts and Griffith made a layup that extended the lead to five points with 1:54 left in the opening frame.
Schmidt then buried a three-point shot and senior Brock Fearday made a pair at the charity stripe to equal the score after the opening period.
St. A controlled a 26-19 advantage into halftime.
The Shoes went on a 10-0 run to tie the game, highlighted by junior Landyn Thoele’s layup, which he made off a spin move.
The Bulldogs answered with a 9-2 run to close the quarter. Senior Sam Link hit a midrange shot after Thoele’s layup. Brock Fearday added five points and Schmidt scored two in the period.
St. A edged T-Town by four points in the second half, 34-30.
Bulldogs senior Will Fearday made a three-pointer that pushed the lead back to double-digits, 31-21, with 4:54 left.
Thoele then converted a three-point play, cutting the lead to nine, 34-25.
St. A answered with a 7-0 run, making it 41-25 with 2:21 remaining in the third. Griffith made a three-pointer and hit a layup during the surge.
Schmidt hit a milestone during the fourth quarter when he reached 1,000 points for his career with seven minutes left. The number was hit on his second free throw, which pushed the lead to 13 points, 47-34.
The Shoes tried to storm back into the game after that.
Drew Hoene made two three-pointers in a row and Niebrugge converted a putback after rebounding a missed shot.
Hoene was hit with a technical foul with 4:37 left, sending Schmidt to the foul line, where he made one of his two attempts.
Hoene didn’t let that fluster him, hitting a three-pointer to cut the lead to eight points.
Hoene finished with 14 points, 11 in the fourth.
Niebrugge had 21 points to lead T-Town.
“He continues to get better and better,” Shoes head coach Chet Reeder said. “We wanted to go to Mick more but didn’t get it to him enough. We felt we had an advantage to score and get them in foul trouble.”
Thoele had 10 points and Kremer finished with four.
“Their two dudes were really good,” Reeder said. “I thought we did a pretty good job [on everyone else]. They got into a rhythm at the foul line to start the game. That kind of hurt us because that got them going.”
Schmidt led all scorers with 26 points.
“He did a great job putting us on his back,” Rincker said. “His touch, effort and work ethic put him in a position to make those shots; you can’t say enough about that.”
Brock Fearday had 14 points. Griffith had 10. Will Fearday had eight and Link had two.
Rincker was pleased with how the supporting cast performed.
“They did a great job,” Rincker said. “They’re pretty good basketball players. We’ve known that for a while, but it’s taken them a little bit of time to figure out the varsity game and they’re doing that right now.”
Though help was needed, the night centered around two of the better scorers in the area.
“They’re all-staters for a reason,” Reeder said. “They make difficult shots and plays.”