McPHERSON, Kan. – A comeback effort in the final two minutes of the Sub-State Semifinal fell just short for McPherson High School Girls Basketball on Tuesday, March 3, falling to Buhler 53-50 to end the season.
The athleticism and hustle by the Bullpups and the Crusaders were nearly even, but shots fell early for Buhler as they took a 15-7 lead at the end of the opening quarter after shooting 6/11 on the floor, leaving McPherson to shoot just 2/10. McPherson finally saw some shots fall in the second, but Buhler kept answering back to lead 24-17 at halftime.
McPherson came out of the locker room on fire, going on a 7-0 run in the first 44 seconds of the third quarter to tie the game. McPherson eventually took the lead in the third quarter, but Buhler stormed back to lead 36-34 going into the fourth quarter. Timely shots, especially by Kinley Combs, who made four 3-point shots in the game for Buhler, saw the Crusaders up 47-37 with 2:22 remaining.
The Bullpups, in what seems to be typical March fashion in the game of basketball, found a way to storm back. Senior Maryn Sandbo started the comeback effort with a layup before forcing a turnover. After two made Buhler free throws made the score 49-39 Buhler with 1:40 to play, Karlie Cooper went to the free-throw line, where she missed both shots, but senior Brooke Doile got the offensive rebound and layup. Then a Buhler turnover on the ensuing inbound turned into an and-one for Doile, hitting the layup and the free throw to make the score 49-44 with 1:06 left.
Buhler’s Tori Tustian was fouled on the ensuing possession, making one of two free throws, which McPherson turned around to score on a Rylie Whitfield floater to make it 50-46 with 40.4 seconds left. Buhler’s Kaia Edmund then went one-for-two at the line as well, making the score 51-46, but Doile drew a foul and made both foul shots to pull the Bullpups within three points with 20 seconds left. Ella Voss then went to the free-throw line for Buhler, missing the first shot but making the second to make the score 52-48 with 18 seconds left.
After Buhler called their final timeout, sophomore Jersey Alexander made a reverse layup, leaving head coach Clint Kinnamon to call his final timeout with nine seconds left, with the score 52-50 Buhler. After the timeout, Buhler’s Combs, who had a career-high 15 points in the matchup, made the first free throw but missed the second. Doile rebounded the ball and found Sandbo, who pushed up ahead and got a good look to tie the game with a straight-on three-pointer, but it just hit off the back rim, giving Buhler the win 53-50.
Despite the heartbreaking loss, Kinnamon was happy with the team’s fight to the bitter end. “I’m proud of our effort,” Kinnamon said. “We could have shut down [down 10 with two minutes left]. We have kids that learned to compete and have a lot of fight in them, and it showed. It’s a sign of the character that they have, too.”
Doile finished with 13 points and 9 rebounds for McPherson. Whitfield also chipped in with 13 points. Sandbo and Alexander each ended with 9, while Piper Alvord added 6 points and 5 steals.
Year two under Kinnamon ends with a 13-11 record, which saw McPherson winning the outright league title for the 33rd time in school history. The team started the season 2-5, with all five losses coming against teams in higher classes, but McPherson had a big turnaround to end their season, going 11-6 from January through March.
McPherson loses three seniors: Brooke Doile, Maryn Sandbo, and Elley Paulsen. However, they will bring in a freshman class that went unbeaten in their 7th and 8th grade seasons, while also seeing valuable experience from underclassmen this season.
Buhler will travel to face the defending 4A Champions, Wellington, on Friday for the Sub-State Final.
