The Sterling Black Bears are headed back to the Class 2A state tournament after grinding out a 36-25 win over the Ell-Saline Cardinals at the Smith Center 2A SubState Final on Saturday.
Sterling never trailed, but Ell-Saline’s strategy was clear from the start – shorten the game by bleeding a minute or more off the clock on nearly every possession in an effort to keep the Black Bears’ possessions limited.
Boston Ekart helped set the tone early, and Jacob Lewis added a bucket as the Bears carried a narrow 7-6 lead out of the first quarter. From there, Sterling began to gradually take control of the game.
The decisive stretch came in the second quarter. After Ell-Saline pulled within 11-9 on a Trey Williams 3-pointer, Sterling answered with an 11-0 run that changed the game. Blake Smith, Wyatt Newberry, Ekart, and Zane Farney all contributed during that burst as the Bears turned a two-point edge into a 20-9 halftime advantage.
In the third quarter, the Cardinals cut the margin slightly, but the Bears still carried a comfortable 24-14 lead into the fourth.
Ell-Saline made a couple of pushes in the final quarter behind Trey Williams and Kas Kramer, trimming the margin to six at 29-23 and again to five at 30-25. But Sterling answered each time by getting to the foul line and finishing the game there. The Bears scored six of their final seven points on free throws to put the championship away.
Ekart led Sterling with 14 points, doing most of his damage around the basket before adding four free throws. Smith and Newberry each added eight, Lewis scored four, and Farney chipped in two. Sterling did not make a three-pointer, but the Bears were efficient inside, shooting 12-of-19 on two-point attempts.
Ell-Saline was led by Williams and Kramer with 10 points apiece, while Reese Krone added five.
Sterling is now 25-0, and winners of 39 straight will look to defend their 2025 state championship beginning Wednesday at Wichita State’s Koch Arena as they will face the eighth-seeded Douglass Bulldogs (13-10).
