Columbus North’s Cooper Horn goes in for a layup during the regional game at Seymour Saturday night.
Greg Jones | For The Republic
SEYMOUR — For 31 minutes and 56 seconds of Saturday night’s regional battle, Columbus North was on the verge of upsetting defending champion Bloomington North.
But in the closing seconds, the Cougars snatched the regional crown right out from under the Bull Dogs.
JQ Roberts rebounded his own miss and scored on a putback, then completed a three-point play with 3.7 seconds remaining to lift Bloomington North to a 45-43 victory and deny Columbus North its first regional title in 30 years.
“I’m really proud of my guys,” Columbus North coach Paul Ferguson said. “We had a great game plan, and our kids executed it very well. We did a lot of great things out there. We just didn’t get a key rebound at the end and missed some key free throws down the stretch.”
The Bull Dogs (17-9) jumped out to an 8-0 lead midway through the first quarter, led 24-12 at halftime and enjoyed a 28-14 advantage early in the second half. The Cougars turned up the pressure and used a 14-2 run to cut it to 30-28 late in the third quarter.
It looked like Columbus North had weathered the storm when it pushed the lead back to 36-28 with 6:05 left in the game. The Bull Dogs still led 42-36 after a pair of Luke Harmon free throws with 1:16 remaining, but Bloomington North’s Gavin Reed sandwiched two 3-pointers around a Harmon free throw to cut it to 43-42 with 18 seconds left.
After Harmon missed a pair of free throws with still 18 seconds left, the Cougars got the ball into the frontcourt and called their final timeout with 11 seconds remaining. Roberts, who led Bloomington North with 16 points and seven rebounds, then converted his three-point play, and Cooper Horn’s contested 35-footer at the buzzer was off the mark.
“We have a lot of hurt boys in the locker room right now,” Ferguson said. “They’re devastated. We really thought we were going to win the game.”
Columbus North built its halftime lead thanks to 11-of-19 shooting from the field in the first 16 minutes, compared to the Cougars’ 4-of-17.
“We just executed our game plan to perfection,” Ferguson said. “Things we talked about offensively, we did. In the second half, they brought some really heavy pressure. We knew it was coming. It hurt us at first, and then we kind of settled down against it and made some plays. Then, we just didn’t make enough free throws or get enough rebounds at the end.”
“We left it all out there,” Bull Dog senior Tyler Blythe added. “A couple things didn’t fall our way. We played really well, especially in the first half. The second half was a little slower. I’m so proud of these guys. They’re family, and no one can ever take that away from us.”
Horn finished with 17 points to led Columbus North. Damon Edwards scored 10 points, and Harmon added six points and a team-high six rebounds.
“The kids fought hard, played hard, and this didn’t take away from a tremendous season,” Ferguson said. “It was an historic season. I’m so proud of my guys. They came a long way from fifth grade until now. It’s just really hard to see it end.”
Bloomington North 45, Columbus North 43
Bloomington North;7;5;16;17;—;45
Columbus North;15;9;8;11;—;43
Bloomington North (19-5): Dawan Daniels 0 2-4 2, Lucas Vencel 1 0-0 2, Connor O’Guinn 0 0-0 0, Luke Lindeman 6 2-2 14, Gavin Reed 3 0-0 9, JQ Roberts 5 4-4 16, Nehemiah Dangerfield 1 0-0 2. Totals: 16 8-10 45.
Columbus North (17-9): Luke Harmon 1 3-7 6, Tyler Blythe 2 0-1 4, Damon Edwards 5 0-0 10, Ty Ferguson 1 2-3 4, Cooper Horn 8 0-0 17, Drew Schiefer 1 0-0 2. Totals: 18 5-11 43.
3-point goals: Bloomington North 5 (Reed 3, Roberts 2); Columbus North 2 (Harmon, Horn).
