Playoffs can be cruel

By Coach Mark Johnson
KCC 67 – GG 46
The Bearcats started postseason action on Thursday, Feb. 27 in the opening round of the Section 8A basketball tournament. KCC entered the tournament as the No. 1 seed on the west side of the section and drew the No. 9 seed, the Grygla-Goodridge Chargers, after they had defeated the No. 8 seed RLCC Mustangs in the play-in game earlier in the week. KCC and G-G had faced off twice during the regular season with the Bearcats getting both of those wins.
KCC got off to a decent start against the Chargers and took control in the opening minutes of play. The Bearcat offense struggled a bit to hit stride, but the defense kept the Chargers in check. Full court pressure had the Chargers on their heels and forced them into a number of turnovers.
Unfortunately, the Bearcats were not able to consistently turn those extra possessions into points. The Bearcats did enough on the offensive end of the floor to take a 36-17 lead into the locker room at halftime.
The second half played out in an ebb-and-flow type of pattern. The Bearcats put together a run and stretched their lead, but the Chargers came back with a couple possessions of their own to close the gap back down to the 20-point mark. The Chargers never threatened the Bearcat lead, but KCC couldn’t completely close the door on the possibility of a Charger comeback. The Bearcats played well enough to capture the 67-46 win and advance to the quarter final round of the tournament.
It wasn’t the best game for us. We couldn’t keep the momentum in our favor. We would look sharp for a few possessions and then we would take a few possessions off. It can be tough when you have a twenty point lead to stay dialed in and focussed, but in the end that is what the goal is for every game.
Scoring leaders: Morgan Turn 22, Kaydence White 20, Greta Kuznia 10, McKinley Folland 4, Afton Lindgren 4, Hanna Warnke 3, Lily Peterson 2, Berlyn Strege 2
Rebound leaders: McKinley Folland 6, Kaydence White 5, Morgan Turn 5
Assist leaders: Berlyn Strege 4, Hanna Warnke 3, Lily Peterson 3, Afton Lindgren 3
KCC 49 – M-W 56
The quarter final game of the Section 8A tournament pitted the Bearcats against the Mahnomen-Waubun Thunderbirds on Saturday, March 1. The teams played the opening game of the session at noon in the Ralph Englestad Arena in Thief River Falls.
The first half of the game was a see-saw affair. The Bearcats and Thunderbirds exchanged a handful of leads but neither team was able to gain enough separation to squarely put the pressure on their opponent’s shoulders. KCC had the best opportunity to do that when they went up by six midway through the half, but Thunderbirds held tough and did not let the Bearcats take control of the game. Turnovers plagued the Bearcats in the first half and gave away a ton of offensive possessions. KCC held onto a 23-19 lead as the first half of play came to a close.
The second half was a battle for the Bearcats. The Thunderbirds came back and took a little bit of a lead in the first stages of play. KCC responded and regained the lead, and looked like they might be able to settle in and escape with the win. Turnovers played a role again in the late stages of the game as the Bearcats weren’t able to finish off possessions in an efficient and effective manner. The seconds wound down on the Bearcat season and the cruelties of playoff basketball became a reality as the Bearcats were bounced from postseason play with a 49-56 loss. The Bearcats finished the season with a 24-3 record, and were regular season champions in both the Northern Galaxy and North Border Conferences.
It is heartbreaking for just about everyone this time of year. Only one team advances through the section tournament. Nineteen of 20 teams are going to be sad with how it ends. It doesn’t negate all the accomplishments during the season, it just stings for the moment. The girls had a tremendous season and should be proud.
Scoring leaders: Morgan Turn 15, Kaydence White 8, Berlyn Strege 7, McKinley Folland 6, Greta Kuznia 6, Lily Peterson 4, Hanna Warnke 2, Aliyah Vig 1
Rebound leaders: Stats not available at time of print
Assist leaders: Stats not available at time of print