Byron builds big lead, punches ticket to state finals

STERLING – On the biggest stage in program history, Byron came out ready to roll Monday night at the Class 2A Sterling Supersectional.

The Tigers earned their first-ever trip to the state finals, building a double-digit lead early and holding off every Chicago Latin surge for an 85-71 victory at Musgrove Fieldhouse.

“We just want to be violent and aggressive right out of the gate,” senior guard Ryan Tucker said. “Our key word the whole year is just be violent, set the tone. We wanted to stay steady, no matter how high we got, and that fast start got us going for sure.”

Byron (30-2) shot 73% (11-for-15) in the opening eight minutes to take a 28-15 lead after one quarter. And every time Latin cut into the lead, the Tigers had the answer.

For the game, Byron hit 61% from the floor (30-for-49), including 50% (8-for-16) from 3-point range, and also finished 74% (17-for-23) from the free-throw line; the Tigers were 8-for-10 in the final 2:19 to ice the game.

“We came out knowing the reward, and we came out on fire. We wanted to play our best. This game meant a lot, and we really wanted to set the tone right away,” senior forward Jack Hiveley said. “We have a lot of leaders on our team, and that’s what got us here. We kept our composure, played defense, did the little things, and that’s what got us this win.”

The “little things” included forcing 14 turnovers on defense – including a pair of 10-second violations in the first half – and sharing the ball on offense. Four different Tigers scored in double figures, and they assisted on 22 of their 30 baskets.

“We came out fast, just threw the first punch. We shot well, we played as a team, and we got out to that early lead, which helped a lot,” sophomore guard Cason Newton said. “We just played fast, and we were aggressive. We got all over them, and they weren’t ready for it.”

The transition game was a big key, as Byron turned steals and long rebounds into runout layups. And using their length in an aggressive three-quarter-court press and half-court zone took Latin (22-11) out of what it wanted to do offensively.

“These are the games we really love to play, getting it out in transition and running up and down the floor,” senior guard Carson Buser said. “We definitely like to play fast, so it helps any time we can get out and run and we don’t have to get in an offensive set. And we can force a lot of turnovers, so that helps us a lot too.”

Byron opened the game on a 17-6 run, capped by a Tucker dunk off a steal and assist from Buser, then Hiveley three-point play as he went coast-to-coast on a steal for another fast-break basket. But Latin battled back. Trailing 30-17 just two minutes into the second quarter, the Romans found some rhythm on offense thanks to the slashing ability of senior Ryan Mbouombouo. As he started getting to the basket and finishing with layups or pull-up jumpers, the Tigers’ lead started to shrink.

Mbouombouo sparked a 13-3 run to cut the deficit to 33-30 with 1:55 left in the first half, but Byron answered with 3-pointers from Newton and Tucker; Tucker’s came off a skip pass from Buser with 3.9 seconds left in the second quarter to push the lead back to 41-32 at the halftime.

“Our coaches got on us a little bit when they went on a run, so to just come back out and extend the lead was big for us,” Buser said. “Our coaches can help us regroup, and I think we did that well tonight.”

Hiveley and Tucker both hit 3s to lessen the impact of Latin’s surge to start the second half, as the Romans got within four twice and five two more times. Free throws by Newton, a transition basket by Tucker on a pretty pass from Hively, a 3 by Newton, then Hiveley’s sprint down the court on a long rebound for a layup turned a 56-51 lead into a 65-51 margin with 6:40 left in the fourth.

The Romans never got closer than seven points the rest of the way.

“We trusted each other,” Tucker said about the key to answering Latin’s runs. “Every day we’re working hard together. We see each other in school, we’re best friends, so we’ve got trust in each other when we’re on the court. It’s just a tight-knit team.”

Tucker led the Tigers with 28 points to go with three rebounds, three assists and three steals. Hiveley stuffed the stat sheet with 21 points, seven rebounds, six assists and two steals, and Newton hit four 3s and finished with 17 points, three assists and two blocks. Sophomore forward Caden Considine scored 13 points on 5-for-6 shooting, and also added three rebounds and two blocks. Buser only scored two points, but he had a strong floor game with nine assists, four rebounds and two steals.

“We’ve got a lot of team chemistry. We like to share the ball,” Considine said. “It might look like Ryan Tucker scores all our points, but he makes great passes to us all and gets us all involved – and his shots just go in about 90% of the time, so we like when he shoots it. But we’ve got a lot of guys who can make plays for us.”

Mbouombouo had team highs of 25 points, nine rebounds, three assists and three steals to pace Latin, while Nicholas Rotter added 14 points, three rebounds, two assists and three steals. Rogan McClendon finished with 11 points and four rebounds, and Ryan McLaughlin chipped in six points, two assists and a steal.

The Romans were hot early on as well, shooting 67% (14-for-21) in the first half and 57% (20-for-35) through three quarters. They cooled off a bit in the fourth, finishing at 48% (27-for-56) from the field for the game, and 76.5% (13-for-17) from the free-throw line.

“We’re very resilient. That’s our motto: we never back down, we keep going no matter what. They did get a nice lead at the beginning, went on a nice run on us. We started by missing two free throws, and they kind of jumped on us,” Latin coach Aubery DeNard said. “But we clawed back, got it within four or five a couple of times, but the ball didn’t fall our way tonight. We made history here at Latin this year. We’ve never won a sectional, so that’s big. Our hope was to win a supersectional and go on and play in the Final Four down in Champaign, but it just didn’t happen. I’m so proud of these guys. All year, they gave me their all.

“It takes so much energy to come back, and Byron’s a very well-coached team, give them a lot of credit. They shot 60% from the field, and they deserved it tonight. They worked their tails off. Two great teams going at it, and they got the best of us. Kudos to them, they made their shots tonight and they live to fight another day and move onto the Final Four; congratulations to them, it’s a blessing.”

Byron will take on Benton in the second Class 2A state semifinal around 3:45 p.m. Thursday at State Farm Center in Champaign; Benton defeated Teutopolis 43-36 in the SIU Supersectional in Carbondale. The first semifinal will be Williamsville vs. Chicago Phillips at 2 p.m.

In their first trip to the state finals, the Tigers will look to add a state title in basketball to the crown they won in football back in November.

“It means everything. I mean, that’s history,” Tucker said. “To be able to lead a team to state, to be on a team that goes to state, it means everything. I’m really looking forward to it.”

“This feels amazing,” Hiveley added. “Knowing that you get to keep on playing and you get to have an experience that a lot of people don’t. We just get to keep playing more basketball, that’s the best part about it.”