CLASS 1A STATE CHAMPIONSHIP

Madison falls in 1A title game
Illini Central use big fourth quarter comeback; Trojans get 24-points from Bourney

03-09-13
BY JACK BULLOCK
PEORIA
The Madison Trojans were on the brink of a state championship.

But not being able to take care of the ball proved to be their undoing.

The Trojans committed 18-turnovers and the sent Mason City-Illini Central to the foul line much too often.

This combination led to the Cougars taking control by outscoring Madison 28-12 in the fourth quarter as Coach John Giesler's team celebrated a 55-44 championship game victory at Carver Arena on Saturday afternoon.

“Give Madison credit. They came out and played hard but my guys just somehow found a way to win,” added Coach Giesler. “The beat us in about every stat you could think of except the final score. We got out-shot from the field, we got out-shot from the free throw line, we got outrebounded. I don't know how we won the game?”

Madison head coach Jaime Cotto saw his athletic club crash the boards in their usual style, out rebounding Illini Central, 40-24.

But their inability to convert from the free throw line (9-of-20) and from the field (16-of-43) proved to be too much to overcome.

Illini Central went on a 8-0 run to begin the final frame and took command by converting 16-of-22 free ones in the final quarter.

Jared Entwistle, a 5-foot-11 senior all-stater, scored 12 of his team best 16 points in the fourth quarter.

A 3-pointer by Entwistle was part of the 8-0 beginning and the ultimate end of the road for Madison, who had led for most of the game.

Another 3-pointer, this time from Justin Onken, gave the Cougars their first lead of the second half 35-32 with 6:38 left.

Following a basket by Madison's reserve Carvel Dixon cut the deficit to just 39-36, Illini Central didn't allow another Trojans' field goal until just under a minute left in the contest.

Illini Central finished off Madison by scoring nine of the next ten points for a 48-37 lead.

“First of all I'm very proud of our kids. A lot of people didn't think we would make it this far. We stuck together like a family like we talked about all season. We battled hard and I really thought we had a game plan to get them (Illini Central) our halfcourt trap was giving them a lot of problems,” said Coach Cotto. “We got 53 (McClure) in foul trouble, that was one of our goals because we knew he was aggressive. We just didn't finish around the rim and missed our free throws. The ball just didn't roll in for us.”
Marquis Bourney, a 6-foot-2 senior all-stater in his own right, finished with a game-high 24-points and he scored the final seven points for Madison, all in the final minute.

But a technical foul called on Madison's Johnny Meitzenheimer was just what the doctor ordered for the Cougars.

Entwistle, who was fouled on the initial play by Bourney, nailed four straight charities to nail the coffin shut on the championship ending.

Bourney scored over half of Madison's points, but hit just 8-of-24 shots overall as the Trojans struggled offensively.

Illini Central converted Trojans' mistakes into 17-points off turnovers in the victory.

After having been close to getting to the title game last season (third place) the Cougars reached their ultimate goal with the victory.

Coach Giesler's squad didn't shoot the ball well in the contest themselves (16-of-46) but were 20-of-32 from the free throw line, a place that they lived at in the second half.

Jordan Bradshaw, another senior on the Illini Central team, stands just 6-foot but came up big in the championship tilt.

Bradshaw scored 14-points and led all players with 12-rebounds.

Six-foot-four senior Duncan McClure, who was in foul trouble early, managed to add eight points as did Onken.

The Trojans appeared on the verge of a blow out win in the first quarter, jumping out to a quick lead in the first few minutes.

Bourney scored twice on a drive to the basket and a rebound put back.

Meitzenheimer banked home a 3-pointer at the 5:12 mark for a 7-0 lead.

Madison could have been up by a lot more at intermission but they couldn't convert from the foul line.

The Trojans were just 3-of-8 at the stripe in the first half.

Illini Central got its first lead with just :28 left before the half on back to back baskets by Bradshaw.

But a 3-pointer by Bourney closed the quarter with Madison up 21-20.

Madison committed 12 of their 18-turnovers in the first half.

With McClure picking up his fourth foul early in the second half, Madison got to the basket in the third quarter with Bourney scoring six points.

He converted four free throws as Madison was still clinging to a 32-27 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

Mason City-illini Central owned the final eight minutes and took home the championship in front of a large contingency of hometown fans in attendance.

Bourney closed out his career by adding 10-rebounds to his 24-points.

The Trojans, playing a very tough schedule, finished 21-12.

“These guys just don't quit. They have a lot of heart,” said Coach Giesler. “That is one of the things that we talked about the last couple of days we were here. We said 'we were going to do whatever it took to win the state championship' and we've been talking about this for a year. It has been a goal of ours for a year. They were going to do it. One of the last things I said to them going out onto the court was that 'we're the top 1A team in the state, let's go out there and prove it.”

1
2
3
4
-
F
Mason City-Illini Central
07
13
07
28
-
55
Madison
14
07
11
12
-
44

MMason City-Illini Central (55) – Bale 0 0 0-0 0, Bradshaw 5 0 4-6 14,. McClure 3 0 2-3 8, Entwistle 2 1 11-18 16, Onken 0 2 2-4 8, Himmel 0 0 0-0 0, Martin 3 0 1-3 7, Thompson 0 0 0-0 0, Albers 0 0 0-0 0, Kirby 1 0 0-0 2, Neuendorf 0 0 0-0 0, Curry 0 0 0-0 0, Lynn 0 0 0-0 0, Luft 0 0 0-0 0.
2FG-13, 3FG-3, FT-20-32, PF-16.

Madison (44) – Bryant 2 0 0-0 4, Starnes 1 0 0-0 2, Meitzenheimer 0 1 0-0 3, Powers 2 0 0-1 5, Bourney 6 2 6-10 24, Ware 0 0 2-6 2, Brownlee 0 0 0-0 0, Dixon 2 0 1-3 5.
2FG-13, 3FG-3, FT-9-20, PF-26.

Fouled Out – Bryant, Powers - Madison.
Technical Fouls – Meitzenheimer - Madison.