Loss for Keota boys means end of season

MT. PLEASANT ?

The Keota boys? basketball team put a real scare in perennial state competitor Danville in Tuesday night?s district semifinal.

The Eagles staged a big comeback in the second half and trailed by just one point after three periods, but the Bears ran away in the fourth quarter to escape with a 70-61.

The two teams battled in a close first quarter, which saw Danville?s fast-paced style square off with an Eagle offense that used a half-court offense to free up open shots from outside.

The Bears were able to pull out an early lead and held 14-11 advantage after one quarter.

The Danville offense picked up a bit in the second quarter. The Bears got a couple of shots outside and won the second period, 19-10, to take a 33-21 lead into the break.

The Eagles refused to go away, however, and put together a rally that ignited the Keota crowd in the third period.

The Eagles held Danville to their worst offensive quarter of the day and caught fire from behind the 3-point line to cut the Bears? lead to just one point, at 45-44, going into the final period.

Keota head coach Dan Stout said taking care of the ball in the third period allowed the Eagles to get back in the ballgame.

?We didn?t turn the ball over; that was the key,? Stout said.

?In the third quarter, we probably had one or two turnovers, and we probably had 25 for the game.

?I told the kids, ?if you don?t turn the ball over, we can score against them.??

Keota had the ball early in the fourth quarter and got an open shot from the top of the perimeter to try and take a two-point lead, but the ball rimmed out.

The Eagles wouldn?t get another chance to steal the lead.

Danville scored the next seven points in the game, thanks in part to a handful of offensive rebounds, including one leading to a dagger 3-pointer which got a rowdy Bears cheering section back on their feet.

Keota was able to stop the bleeding, but the Eagles couldn?t get the Danville lead back down to one possession and the Bears got out of Mt. Pleasant with a nine-point win.

?I think we kind of ran out of gas a little bit,? Coach Stout said after the game.

?We put a lot of energy into the third quarter, got back in it and had a 3-point shot to take the lead. If it goes in, you never know what is going to happen.?

Jacob Wickenkamp led the Eagles with 21 points on the night.

Hunter Wilson scored 13 points including three of the team?s seven 3-pointers.

Avery Conrad scored 10 points to give the Eagles three double-digit scorers.

Cole Stout scored seven points in the loss. Luke Greiner had six. Hunter Wilson, JD Stout and Jack Eakins each finished with two.