Staff writer
The Centre High School boys basketball team won two games and lost one in this past week’s Centre Invitational Tournament.
They defeated Peabody-Burns High School Jan. 18, 47-29, lost to Hope Friday, 67-62, and defeated White City Saturday, 41-22, to take third place.
The Cougars were fortunate that White City had a cold shooting night. The Huskies defeated them earlier in the year.
Brian Burhoop had an outstanding game, completing five 3-pointers, 4-of-5 free throws, and two field goals for a total of 23 points. He also had 10 rebounds.
There wasn’t much scoring in the first half. The two teams were tied, 8-8, in the first quarter when Rustyn Kerbs made a free throw and Burhoop sank a 3-pointer to give Centre a 12-8 lead.
The Huskies came back with 6 unanswered points to take the lead, 14-12. However, two free throws and another 3-point shot by Burhoop gave Centre a 17-14 lead at the end of the half.
White City scored just 8 points in the second half compared with 24 by Centre, resulting in a 19-point victory for the Cougars.
Hope
Friday’s semifinal game against Hope proved to be a humdinger. It was the only game of the tournament that went into overtime.
The game was a seesaw until halfway into the third quarter, when Hope pulled ahead and led, 42-34, after a last-second 3-pointer.
Both teams turned over the ball numerous times in the fourth quarter. With 3 minutes, 45 seconds remaining, Burhoop stole the ball and scored 2 points to give Centre a 45-44 lead.
The lead continued to change hands. Time was running out, and it looked like Hope was going to declare a 56-54 victory. However, Tanner Brunner was fouled as the buzzer sounded. His two free throws put the game into overtime.
The game was tied once more at 58-58 on a layup by Brunner before the Lions gained the lead for good and won by 5 points, 67-62.
Burhoop led scoring with 24 points. He also led at the boards with 17 rebounds. Brunner had 12 points and 8 rebounds.
Peabody-Burns
The Cougars’ easiest game was the first game of the tournament against Peabody-Burns. After a 16-3 first quarter, a victory seemed assured.
The Cougars led 24-15 at halftime, 37-20 after three quarters, and 47-29 at the finish.
Brunner led scoring with 16 points. He and Trevor Hageberg led at the boards with 8 rebounds each. Burhoop scored 11 points and had 5 steals. Adam Matz had 7 steals and 4 assists.
Individual totals
Scoring: Brian Burhoop, 58; Tanner Brunner, 32; Rustyn Kerbs, 21; Adam Matz, 12; Tyler Klenda, 11; Kordell Harding, 7; Justin Deines, 4.
Free throws: Burhoop, 7/9; Brunner, 10/17; Harding, 3/8; Kerbs, 2/8; Klenda, 1/2; Hageberg, 1/2.
Rebounds: Burhoop, 32; Brunner, 23; Hageberg, 14; Klenda, 14; Matz, 8; Harding, 8; Deines, 4.
Assists: Kerbs, 9; Matz, 8; Burhoop, 7; Harding, 3; Brunner, 2; Klenda, 2; Deines, 2; Hageberg, 1.
Steals: Matz, 14; Burhoop, 9; Kerbs, 5; Klenda, 4; Brunner, 4; Harding, 1.