BEARCATS BEAT ELKS TO ADVANCE IN REGIONAL, EARN STATE TOURNAMENT BERTH

The Bearcats trailed Elkins 47-45 with 4:10 to play Wednesday night in their Class 3A Region 1 game in West Fork.

The Bearcats (17-8) responded by tying the score for the fourth time on a C.J. Johnson basket on the next possession and went on to a 54-50 win to move into the regional semifinals and punch their ticket for the Class 3A state tournament next week in Lamar.

After Elkins (17-14) was unable to break the fourth tie score of the night the Bearcats, who earned the top seed from the 3A-4 by winning last week’s district tournament, would do so with a Jace Washburn 3 with 2:22 remaining.

Elkins, the four seed from the 3A-1, would answer with a 3 of their own at the 1:13 mark and it was 50-50.

Colter Fisher, who led the way for the Bearcats with 19 points and seven rebounds, took over from there.

The junior drove inside for a basket with 1:01 to go and the Bearcats were in front again, 52-50.

After Elkins couldn’t answer the Elks declined to foul and the Bearcats let the clock tick away until, with the shot clock winding down Fisher hit a fade away shot from the right side to make it 54-50.

Elkins still didn’t use a time out and after a time expired during a scramble for the basketball in front of the Elkins bench.

In the first two minutes of the game the Bearcats and Elks, who won the Class 3A Region 1 tournament in Booneville last year, were tied twice, but Elkins would lead 8-4 midway through the quarter.

Noah Harrel sandwiched a Fisher basket with a pair of 3s and by the 3:10 mark of the first quarter it was a 12-8 Bearcat lead.

There would be two more lead changes in the quarter with the second coming on a 3 by Raiden Ferguson that gave the Bearcats a 14-13 lead.

Elkins scored the next six points and would continue to lead until early in the third quarter.

The Elks twice led by seven, the second time at 27-20 with 2:28 left in the half, but they would not score again in the half.

The Bearcats managed only a single score themselves, a basket by Aiden Carter, and it was 27-22.

Ferguson hit a 3 just 17 seconds into the second half and after Fisher connected on one of two technical foul shots he also scored on the next possession and the Bearcats were back in front, 28-27.

Another Ferguson 3 – the senior scored 13 and also took three charges – made it 31-27 and an 11-0 run spanning 3:48 and the halftime break.

Though Elkins would not lead again until 4:10 remained, the difference between the two teams would be no greater than five the rest of the night.

It was 37-32 After Fisher scored with 2:33 left in the third quarter but a theft exchange followed by a slam dunk got Elkins within 3-34 and the Elks eventually got within 38-37 with a conventional three-point play with 1:36 left in the quarter.

The difference then was a single free throw by Washburn, his first point since the first Bearcat points of the night.

The sophomore, who would finish with 10 points and five rebounds, hit two more free throws – the last of the night for either side – with 1:24 left in the quarter and he scored again 26 seconds later and it was 42-37 after three quarters.

Elkins again closed to 42-41 before Ferguson hit his third 3 of the half to make it 45-41.

But the Bearcats wouldn’t score again for the next 3:10 when Johnson tied the game at 47-47 with 3:51 to play.

The Bearcats will next play at 8:30 Friday night against the winner of tonight’s 8:30 game between West Fork, the two seed from the 3A-1, and Charleston, the three seed from the 3A-4.