Coble’s buzzer-beater sinks Pekin

PACKWOOD - Fans who braved the winter storm warning to witness an Iowa High School Athletic Association Class 1A District 8 semifinal Tuesday saw an instant classic boys basketball game.

The game had everything a fan would want - well played, boisterious crowd, good sportsmanship, engaged student sections, a big comeback, and a buzzer-beating game-winning shot.

With the score tied at 50 after Pekin's Cameron Millikin hit a runner with 9 seconds left, WACO's Nik Coble hit a step-back three as the horn sound for a 53-50 victory.

Pekin ends the year with a 15-4 record.

WACO (16-4) advances to play Thursday at Burlington against No. 5 New London (20-1), a 75-60 winner over Notre Dame.

Coble finished with 28 points, 14 rebounds, four steals and two blocks.

'We have a play we are supposed to run, but we did not quite execute it,” Coble said. 'I saw the clock so I thought I better get something up that would give us a chance. The guy was playing just enough off of me that I could not get around him, so I told myself I got to pull it and I did and I went in.”

'Looking back, maybe I should've called timeout when we made that layup, but who's to say,” Pekin coach John Swanson said. 'They would've had time to set up a play so I let it go. I'll be chewing on that one for a while. That's basketball. A good player made a great play. We have played against a lot of good guys this year but not with his strength or a guy that stuck to what he was doing. A lot of guys get frustrated and play into what we want, but he did not do that.”

Both Coble and teammate Gabe Reichenbach picked up two fouls in the first quarter but still lead 15-14 despite Millikin's triple toward the end of the period. Millikin would finish with a team-high 19 points.

'Cam played great,” Swanson said. 'He is a big-game player and he hit some tough shots.”

WACO scored the first 11 points of the second period. Pekin didn't score until Millikin's basket with 3 minutes, 25 seconds left in the quarter, but that started a 7-0 run for the Panthers.

'I thought we had some good looks, we just were not converting them,” Swanson said. 'So I was not too concerned about our offense. I thought where we struggled was getting stops on a consistent basis.”

It was 29-21 WACO at the half.

The Warriors built that lead to 40-29 with 3:15 left in the third stanza, then it was all Pekin.

A 12-2 Panther run was highlighted by 3-pointers from Brady Millikin and Nick Tschudy.

'Nick came off the bench cold and goes 2 for 2 on threes so maybe I should have left him in longer,” Swanson said. 'Caleb Comstock played great, Brady hit some tough threes.”

It was a 42-41 WACO advantage to start the final stanza.

Coble canned a three and teammate Colton Horak a two for a 47-41 WACO lead.

Tshudy's trey and Comstock's two answered.

Cam Millikin's twisting runner gave Pekin a 48-47 lead with 1:55 left, the Panthers' first lead since 9-8.

'We went to a different offensive set and they didn't really figure it out,” Swanson said. 'We got some open shots out of it. We made a few more layups and dropped some threes. That was really the difference. We are always preaching poise and confidence and we had it. The guys exuded that and that's why we were able to come back. Our guys just kept responding and believing in themselves.”

Coble missed two free throws with 52 seconds left, but Horak got the rebound and Elijah McGowan buried a triple from the top of the key for a 50-48 edge. It was his second trey of the game.

'He didn't leave floor all game and chased shooters at the top of our zone,” WACO coach Paul Kissell said of McGowan. 'The big thing was our focus down the stretch. We were being patient on offense. It's a lot easier if we make our free throws, which we did not do down the stretch. I would be a lot less red in the face and the kids would've made it a lot easier on my heart.”

The hearts of the fans were in their throats when Pekin tied the game.

'They were double teaming Nik so we were looking for our other post and we came out and did just the opposite,” Kissell said.

What saved WACO was its preparation. Despite no timeout being called, success. End of game situations is something they practice every day.

'We set a pick and Nik has the option to roll or pop out,” Kissell said. 'With all the ball pressure, they had on (ball handler) Drew (Kissell), Nik made the correct decision to pop out and hit the open shot. That had very little to do with coaching. That was just a result of all through the season running those plays. The stuff we do in practice is what showed up on the floor tonight.”

It was a packed house and a great environment for a high school basketball game.

'It was a great game to be involved with,” Coach Kissell said. 'Our energy is what made the difference, but give them credit they took it to the basket strong and knocked down some threes.”

Pekin made seven threes, WACO six and four of those by Coble. Horak had seven points and seven steals. Drew Kissell ran point with only one turnover against a lot of pressure. Reichenbach had eight points, McGohan six.

Brady Millikin tallied 12 points and Pekin teammate Dayne Eckley had four as did Comstock. Kennan winn had three, Tshudy six. Braden Sobaski had two.

'Our seniors are pretty shook up,” Swanson said. 'I did not have a speech ready for this. It's a tough way to go out for our seniors.”

Coble didn't care who won between New London and Notre Dame.

'I just want to keep playing. Both teams beat us, so I want to get them back. It will be at a neutral site so it should be fine and I hope we get a great crowd like we got here. It will be a lot of fun.”