Gritty. That would be the way to describe the win for Maywood-Hayes Center on Friday Night. The #2 seeded Wolves played #6 seeded SEM in the semifinals of the Class D2 NSAA Boys State Basketball Tournament. And for the first time since co-oping, Maywood-Hayes Center is heading to a championship game as they beat the Mustangs 53-48.
In the opening quarter, SEM came out incredibly physical, and the Wolves had to adjust a little. They found themselves down 8-3 early on. MHC though, went on a 10-0 run making the Mustangs take a timeout. The Wolves clung to a narrow lead going into the second, 14-12.
In the second period, it looked like MHC would run away and hide as they went up 19-12. But, SEM went on a 16-7 run and led at halftime by two, 28-26.
The Mustangs carried that momentum early into the second half.
SEM began the second half on a 6-1 run, as the Wolves hit one free throw, but the Mustangs drilled two three-pointers and it was 34-27 all of the sudden early in the quarter. There wasn't a ton of scoring in the third period as both teams fell in love with the jump shot and they were not falling. A good reason for that was solid defense from both squads.
It was all knotted up going to the fourth, 39-39.
In the final quarter, MHC took over. They went on a 9-0 run in the first few minutes, really the run was 15-0 stretching back to the later stages of the third period. It was 48-39 with a few minutes to go in the game and SEM would not go away. They clawed back into the game and made it close including a four-point deficit at 48-44, but MHC did close the door on a full comeback as they knocked in some free throws and made some huge defensive stops.
With the win, MHC is heading to their first-ever state title game.
SEM played well, despite the loss. They were led by Jace Rosentreader with 16 points. Colt Schroeder had 11 points for the Mustangs. They are 18-8 now and will play #4 Wynot in the 3rd place game today at 3:00 P.M. That game will be played at Lincoln Northwest.
For Maywood-Hayes Center, Jerry Ingison had 21 points and Haydn Farr scored 13. Jaxon Anders had eight and Gage Gerlach added seven. The Wolves are 24-3 and will play at 8:15 P.M. against #1 Shelton from Pinnacle Bank Arena. Shelton beat Wynot, 63-60 a game that took three overtimes to determine a winner.
We caught up with MHC senior Haydn Farr after the win on Friday night.
Some Boys State Basketball History for MHC According to the NSAA Website
Second straight year making state, 2023 they made it to the semifinals, lost to Johnson-Brock, then fell to DCS in the third-place game.
First Title Game Appearance in Co-op History
Maywood won state in Class N in 1928
Maywood had four state appearances
Hayes Center had nine appearances
Hayes Center had three straight third-place finishes in 2008 (D1), and in 2009 and 2010 in D2