Josh Zink knew his North Clay boys basketball was in for a challenge.
Despite defeating Dieterich by eight and 13 points, respectively, during the regular season, Zink knew the postseason could paint a different picture.
After all, one season ago, it did just that.
North Clay defeated the Movin’ Maroons in the 2021-2022 season twice during the regular year, only to be defeated by Dieterich in a regional quarterfinal at the Cardinals’ home gymnasium.
Zink’s bunch, which returned three key members from that 2021-2022 team, remembered that day and wouldn’t let the same thing happen again, defeating Dieterich (18-12), 63-52, to advance to a regional semifinal.
“It’s very difficult because they’re good,” Zink said. “They can beat anybody on any given night; we’re lucky to beat them three times this year. The boys really gutted it out.”
Both teams started the game struggling to find the bottom of the basket.
Caleb Gephart opened the scoring for the Movin’ Maroons with 5:58 left after hitting a mid-range jumper.
Gephart then promptly drilled a three-pointer to make it 5-3.
Levi Smith then converted a layup and Alex Boose hit a three-pointer with 3:13 left to cut the Dieterich lead to 10-8, but Gephart answered with another three-pointer with 2:34 left.
North Clay (21-9) would then cut the lead back to three points, 13-10, before Kolton Kidd hit a layup to push the margin back to five.
Logan Fleener then completed a three-point play with 1:22 left that made it a one-point contest, 15-14, but Lucas Westendorf responded for the Movin’ Maroons, drilling a three-pointer to make it a four-point game.
Dieterich led by five, 23-18, at the end of the first.
The Cardinals continued to stick around, though.
Cody Zimdars cut the Movin’ Maroons lead to two, 25-23, after a three-pointer with 3:53 left.
Westendorf then responded with a three-pointer of his own before Fleener took matters into his own hands, going on a personal 6-0 run to make it 29-28.
The highlight of that run, though, came with 2:19 left.
Fleener tipped the ball away from a would-be Dieterich pass and slammed home a dunk over Gephart, sending the entire building into a frenzy.
Fleener then pounded his chest while teammates celebrated in the background.
“When you got a player like Logan, you want to be able to utilize all his skills,” Zink said. “One of those skills is getting out in transition and that’s why we like to keep him out on top of the zone, where if we get one tip, it’s over. He can go and finish with a dunk, and a lot of times, we need that.”
Following Fleener’s run, the Movin’ Maroons would then regain the lead, 30-29, before Boose drained a three-pointer to make it 32-30.
Dieterich, though, ended the frame with momentum after Westendorf drained his second three-pointer to make the 33-32 halftime score.
How the Movin’ Maroons played in the first half, though, was how North Clay played in the second.
The Cardinals outscored Dieterich, 31-19, in the second half.
For the game, Fleener led the team with 24 points.
Boose had 12 points but also showed his two-way ability, as well, by taking a pair of charges.
“I think people probably get a little surprised about how good a defensive player Alex can be,” Zink said. “Early on in the year, we didn’t get to show him off defensively a whole lot because he’d get in foul trouble early. We’ve been working on trying to get some charges and man; he pulled off two big ones tonight. Those charges are big momentum swings.”
Smith and Zimdars finished with nine points. Ethan Kuenstler had seven, and Jesse Weidner had two.
“I’d say he’s really underrated, but I’d let him continue to be underrated, so people don’t guard him as close as they do,” said Zink of Zimdars. “If he has any room, he’s been told to shoot it.”
Zimdars will look to continue that shooting against St. Anthony on Wednesday night at South Central High School in Farina at 7:30 p.m.
The meeting between the two schools will be the third time they’ve met this season.
North Clay won the first meeting at North Clay High School; the Bulldogs took the second meeting in the National Trail Conference Tournament in late January.
Macon (Meridian) 48, Toledo (Cumberland) 40
Tenth-seeded Macon (Meridian) defeated the No. 5 seed, Cumberland, at Waldrip Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon, 48-40.
The Hawks led 7-6 after the first quarter; the Pirates took a 22-17 lead into halftime.
Colton Denny hit a three-pointer to start the game for Meridian.
Dillon Clark then made a layup after a turnover to push the lead to 5-0 before Gavin Hendrix hit a layup with 4:01 left to make it 5-2.
Brett Brown then made a layup with 1:06 left to push the Hawks’ lead to three points before Roy Ralston made the quarter score with a layup with 7:35 left.
Jaxon Boldt then started the second quarter by making a hook shot to cut the Meridian lead to one before a Maddox McElravy three-point play made it 11-10 with 4:58 left.
Blake McMechan then forced a turnover and used his speed to finish off a layup to make it 13-10, but Denny answered with a three-pointer for the Hawks that tied the game.
Ralston then made a layup to push the Hawks ahead by four, 17-13, before the Pirates closed the half on a 9-0 run.
Cumberland, however, couldn’t overcome foul trouble in the second half, as starters Hendrix and Trevin Magee fouled out, forcing the Pirates into a tough situation.
Hendrix finished the game with 10 points. McElravy and Boldt led the team with 11, and McMechan and Magee had four.
Cumberland finishes the season with a 17-13 overall record and a 7-3 record in the Lincoln Prairie Conference.