(Luke Brown had 40 in a losing effort)

 

The Raymond James Hall of Fame Classic has a different feel this year as for the first time ever, the field was entirely comprised of 1A and 2A schools. The morning session saw a pair of overtime games as Shenandoah and Blackhawk Christian held on to advance to the championship game.

 

In the first game, Shenandoah came back from a ten-point deficit early in the third quarter to beat Blackford 74-73 in overtime. Senior forward Kameron Graddy has eight of his 22 points in the extra frame for the Raiders, who move to 7-1 on the season. Graddy was the beneficiary of several dump-off passes and was able to establish great position on the interior as he finished 10/12 from the field. Joining Graddy with 22 points for the Raiders was Kaden McCullough, who hit four three-pointers in the game and was responsible for the winning free throws in overtime.

 

Jakeb Kinsey used his quickness to routinely get by Blackford defenders on his way to 16 points, and Andrew Bennett chipped in eight points and seven assists.

 

Blackford led by four points at halftime and six entering the fourth quarter. Luke Brown led the Bruins with 40 points on 17/27 shooting and 5/10 shooting from behind the arc. However, he was only 1/2 from the free-throw line, a stark difference for the senior guard, who had been shooting 96% from the line on nearly eight attempts per game this season. Senior forward Landon Grimes contributed 16 points, including a pair of three-pointers in overtime, as well as 11 rebounds.

 

Both teams struggled from the free-throw line as a whole, as Blackford was 4/10 and Shenandoah 9/17 with multiple missed front ends in one and one situations.

 

Blackford will play in the consolation game at 6:00 pm against Barr-Reeve, while Shenandoah advances to the championship game where they will face Blackhawk Christian.

 

Blackford   21  18  15   7  12  -  73

Shenandoah  22  13  13  13  13  -  74

 

Blackford: Luke Brown 40 points (17/27 FGs, 5/10 3Ps, 1/2 FTs), 3 rebs, 4 asts; Landon Grimes 16 points (7/9 FGs, 2/4 3Ps), 11 rebs; Max Wors 8 points (3/9 FGs, 2/4 3Ps), 3 rebs, 2 stls; Jackson Wors 6 points (2/5 FGs, 2/3 FTs), 2 rebs; Cam Elam 2 points (1/3 FGs); Dawson Hundley 1 point (1/2 FTs)

 

Shenandoah: Kameron Graddy 22 points (10/12 FGs, 2/5 FTs), 6 rebs; Kaden McCullough 22 points (6/10 FGs, 4/7 3Ps, 6/8 FTs), 10 rebs, 3 asts, 2 stls; Jakeb Kinsey 16 points (7/11 FGs, 1/4 3Ps, 1/2 FTs), 4 asts, 3 stls; Andrew Bennett 8 points (3/8 FGs, 2/4 3Ps), 4 rebs, 7 asts; Jasper Campbell 4 points (2/4 FGs), 2 rebs; Michael Howard 2 points (1/8 FGs), 3 rebs, 2 asts, 2 stls

 

 

 

In the second game of the early session, Blackhawk Christian outlasted Barr-Reeve in overtime 75-66. The Braves had to withstand an onslaught from Barr-Reeve behind the three-point line, as the Vikings hit 14 triples in the game. Blackhawk Christian was paced by Purdue-bound forward Caleb Furst, who had a double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds. He was one of four Braves in double figures, as Jake Boyer and Marcus Davidson both pitched in with 15 points and Zane Burke added 14 points. Boyer had many timely baskets late in the game, as he frequently punished smaller Barr-Reeve defenders around the rim. Burke also had a great floor game with seven assists without turning the ball over.

 

Barr-Reeve trailed by 13 at the midway point of the second quarter but got back into the game thanks to 14 three-point makes, including a perfect 5/5 shooting from junior guard Kayden Graber off the bench. He tied for the team lead with 16 points alongside Curt Hopf, who also had 16 points to go with eight rebounds. Devin Graber poured in 13 points and Hagen Knepp added nine. Brycen Graber orchestrated the offense to the tune of 11 assists, routinely finding open shooters along the perimeter.

 

In the end, Blackhawk was able to control the glass to the tune of a plus-seven in the rebounding category, and closed the game with 8/10 foul shooting in the overtime period. Barr-Reeve converted only four of seven shots at the foul stripe.

 

The Vikings will play Blackford in the consolation game at 6:00 pm tonight, while Blackhawk Christian moves into the championship game where they will face Shenandoah.

 

Blackhawk Christian  16  18  18  11  12  -  75

Barr-Reeve            9  20  19  15   3  -  66

 

Blackhawk Christian: Caleb Furst 18 points (7/9 FGs, 4/6 FTs), 11 rebs; Jake Boyer 15 points (5/6 FGs, 1/1 3Ps, 4/6 FTs), 7 rebs; Marcus Davidson 15 points (6/12 FGs, 3/6 3Ps), 4 rebs; Zane Burke 14 points (6/15 FGs, 2/2 FTs), 2 rebs, 7 asts; Callan Wood 8 points (1/3 3Ps, 5/6 FTs), 4 rebs, 3 asts, 2 stls; Gage Sefton 5 points (2/2 FGs, 1/1 3Ps)

 

Barr-Reeve: Curt Hopf 16 points (6/11 FGs, 3/7 3Ps, 1/3 FTs), 6 rebs; Kayden Graber 16 points (5/5 3Ps, 1/1 FTs); Devin Graber 13 points (5/7 FGs, 3/5 3Ps), 3 rebs, 5 asts; Hagen Knepp 9 points (4/12 FGs, 1/2 3Ps), 7 rebs, 3 stls; Brycen Graber 6 points (2/14 FGs, 2/2 FTs), 3 rebs, 11 asts; Tommy Kidwell 6 points (2/3 3Ps)