Feb. 27,2019

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. --- There is postseason basketball life in Iberia after Dexter Frisbie.

Having said that, they sure could have used him Wednesday night.

"If we'd had his height," Iberia coach Nick Voss said, "I think we would have been all right."

They didn't ... and they weren't.

Facing a team throwing 6-6, 6-5 and 6-4 at you, however, the undersized Rangers didn't wince --- until the very end.

The Northeast-Cairo Bearcats finished the game with a 13-3 run in the final 2 minutes, 25 seconds to nail down a hard-fought 76-70 win over the Rangers in the Class 2 sectionals at Rackers Fieldhouse.

Oh, Dexter. Behind the 6-10 Frisbie --- who wasn't just a huge mismatch for mortal high school players, he was also talented --- the Rangers went to the Final Four three times in four years from 2013-16.

Entering this one , the Rangers were just two wins away from another trip to the semifinals --- and with their tallest player being 6-3 junior Zachary Voss, the only player taller than 6-1.

But here came 6-6, 6-5, 6-4, that's the bad news. The worse? Those guys are a freshman, junior and sophomore, respectively.

The biggest night for the bigs was supplied by 6-5 junior Jacob Davis, who totaled 18 points --- 14 of those in the second half --- eight rebounds and four blocked shots.

Bryce Taylor, a 6-4 sophomore, hit five 3-pointers and scored 18 points, while 6-6 freshman Gage Wilson only had seven points, but pulled down eight rebounds.

"We knew coming in how big they were," Voss said. "We've gone against some teams with some height, like Licking; we tried to compare this to that game. I don't think their size was something that scared us.

"But their height, for sure, helped them out tonight."

It's not how you start, it's how you finish? Sure, but Cairo owned both.

Playing before an energetic full house, the Bearcats (20-7), as we mentioned, ended the game with a 13-3 run. But they started it with an 11-0 salvo in the first three minutes.

That's 24-3 in a six-point decision.

After that start, the Rangers (20-8) didn't buckle. Iberia's defense created offense, as the Rangers answered with seven straight points to cut the lead to 11-7..

"We amped up our press," Voss said, "and we got them to turn the ball over. I thought we did a really good job with our pressure, especially early in the game."

Cairo led 21-14 after one and bumped the margin back to 10 at 26-16 early in the second quarter. But Iberia battled back and a 3-pointer by 6-foot senior Garrett Ray, who finished with 14 points, gave the Rangers their first lead at 43-41 with 14 seconds left in the half.

Iberia led 43-42 at the break and it was tied 56-56 after three quarters, a frame that featured three ties and four lead changes.

With 2:41 left, a 3-pointer by Ray gave Iberia 67-63 lead, before a 3-ball by Cairo's Alex Zike just 16 seconds later started the game-ending --- and game winning --- 13-3 burst.

"There were a couple things late in the game," Voss said, "that we didn't execute. I thought there were some things I could have done differently to set something up, and I take responsibility for that."

But you can't blame the coach for missing shots.

Down the stretch, 3-pointers were elusive for the Rangers --- as they were all night. They entered the bout shooting 34 percent beyond the arc and on this night, they shot a whopping 38 3-pointers but only made nine, 24 percent.

"We had some really good looks, especially early," Voss said, "but we didn't knock down shots. When you're playing a team with that size, I thought if we shot our percentage we'd have a good chance at it."

Well, 34 percent would have been 13-of-38 --- and that would have meant 12 more points. You can do the math.

The Bearcats sealed it at the free throw line, thanks in large part to Davis. He hit one with 1:30 left to complete a three-point play and give Cairo the lead for good at 69-67, and then two pivotal ones with 50 seconds left to make it a two-possession game at 71-67.

Voss led Iberia with 17 points, while 6-foot senior Jesse Routh had 11 points and a team-high seven rebounds.

"I'm just super proud of my guys," Nick Voss said, "they worked so hard the whole game. They battled."

But that end-of-the-season talk is never easy.

"I just told them that I hope they learned more than just about basketball with me being their coach," Voss said. "I want them to learn life lessons."

The Rangers may have lost this battle, but it sounds like they're winning the war.

IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

The Cairo girls (23-4) completed the sectional sweep with a 48-31 win over the Eugene Lady Eagles (16-12) in the nightcap at Rackers Fieldhouse.

Loeffler's Link

Sectional sweep: Cairo knocks
out Iberia boys, Eugene girls

Chris Leuckel

Iberia's Garrett Ray (12) watches his short jumper fall through the net early in the third quarter of Wednesday night's Class 2 sectional game with Northeast-Cairo at Rackers Fieldhouse.