Tigers advance with thrilling victory over Warriors

WAYLAND — If one things for certain, it’s when New London and WACO meet on the hardwood, it’s always a classic.

For basketball fans who witnessed the Class 1A Region 4 quarterfinal battle between the Tigers and Warriors on Friday night saw just that as New London was able to escape Wayland by the slimmest of margins, 61-60.

Coming in, the No. 5 Warriors had gotten the better of the Tigers three straight times dating back to last season, that includes knocking the Tigers out of the playoffs last February.

Two of those three matchups ended with just four point margins.

This time around, it came right down to the wire once again.

New London held the lead for the majority of the game through the late stages of the first quarter all the way into the wee moments of the fourth.

With just 1:55 to go in the game, WACO got back-to-back buckets from Simeon Reichenbach to give the Warriors a 58-56 lead, their first since the 3:30 mark in the first.

After a pair of missed shots by the Tigers, Cody Graber and Odee Shtefanchuk split at the line for WACO to make it a 60-56 ballgame with 40.4 remaining.

New London did not wavier under the pressure of the clock and the Tigers stars came up big.

Blaise Porter came down court and initially missed the contested shot.

They didn’t give up on the play.

Kade Benjamin got the offensive board, his shot was off the mark as well, but the Tigers scrapped and clawed for any way to stay alive.

Porter leapt for the offensive board himself on the left block and dropped in an and one with 25.8 remaining.

“That was honestly just pure heart,” Porter said. “It’s been my goal the last three years to make state and we’ve come up short. I just had to give it all I could to keep it alive.”

After converting the free throw, the WACO lead was cut to one, 60-59.

With the shot clock off, New London was forced to foul. WACO had a chance to make it a three point game, but Reichenbach’s pair from the stripe were off the mark.

Porter grabbed the board and sprinted down the court as the clock continued to tick.

As he got to the left ark, Porter let it fly, but his shot was short, narrowly touching the rim. That was the perfect result for the Tigers.

As the ball fell short, Benjamin found himself surrounded by Warriors, but the ball dropped to the court right in front of him. He was able to grab the board and score two with the foul to put New London back on top, 61-60, with just 4.5 remaining.

“Coming down I knew I needed to get myself into a position where I can go anywhere and get that ball,” Benjamin said. “When I put that ball up it felt like it sat up there forever. It was a crazy feeling.”

Benjamin missed the foul shot, and WACO got a pretty look from deep, but Odee Shtefanchuk’s three rattled in and out as the Tigers were able to win it.

“I think that’s the highest my heart rate has ever been,” Porter said. “We might have had a little luck on our side, but Kade came up huge and he’s a big reason we won this game.”

WACO jumped out to a 10-4 lead over the Tigers in the first, but New London answered back in the final four minutes of the first as they took the quarter 20-14.

The Warriors chipped away in the second, taking the quarter 16-12, making it 32-30 at the half.

New London built its largest lead of the game, 10 points, 44-34, in the third, but the lead came to just six at the quarters end, 46-40.

In the fourth, New London led by as much as five with just over three minutes to go, before the thrilling ending.

“You got to give the Tigers credit,” WACO head coach Paul Kissell said. “They hit the final shot and they were hitting shots all night. It was a great game to be a part off and it’s something you expect from these two programs.”

The Warriors took the final period, 20-15.

“We have been battling in tough games all year,” New London head coach Bryant Porter said. “We’ve come up short and we’ve come through. Right now there’s no time to come up short, so we’re throwing the kitchen sink. We have one goal and these guys want to be playing under the lights.”

For New London, Porter led with 23 points. Benjamin followed with 20. Brendan Richey ended with 10 points. Rylan Martin tallied five and Leo Gebauer ended with three.

WACO was led by Colton Leichty with 17. Simeon Reichenbach and Hunter Hughes both finished with 11. Chase Waterhouse ended with six. Reece Oswald and Cody Graber both carded five.

WACO ends its season at 21-2.

“These guys would do anything for each other,” Kissell said. “It was always about getting the win. They played together and it was about having fun. They competed the entire year. They earned those 21 wins and they put in the work. We just came up a little short.”

New London, 17-6, will take on Winfield-Mt. Union (19-4) in the semifinal on Tuesday in Mediapolis.