By Ernie W. Webb III
MADISON – With the clock winding down in overtime, Burlingame senior Emily Punches drove to the middle of the lane, drawing two defenders about 10 feet from the basket. As they converged, she leaned toward the middle, releasing a short jumper that hit the side and back of the rim before settling into the net.
That bucket, with less than two seconds left, gave the Bearcats a thrilling 47-45 win against Lebo in a Class 1A Division I sub-state semifinal game at Madison. Now 20-2, Burlingame continues the best season in program history Saturday in the sub-state championship matchup.
“The win means a lot. These girls are winners, and to showcase it on the biggest stage like that it is awesome,” said Burlingame coach Jeff Slater, whose team plays top-ranked Olpe on Saturday. “I personally wanted this for the girls. They have done a lot for our girls athletics, and put a lot into it and being one of the top teams in volleyball and having the season end on a nail-biter to Lebo. I know they didn’t want to go through that again.
“Lebo is a great team, as we have built a fun little rivalry with them, and to be able to win at the most important time of year is huge.”
Punches’ game-winner was a fitting finish in a pressure-packed, back-and-forth overtime that featured three lead changes and three ties. The Wolves (16-5) capitalized on a pair of missed free throws by Burlingame with 42.3 seconds left, pulling even at 45-45 on a Brooklyn Jones basket with 16.2 seconds remaining.
The Bearcats ran the clock until Punches, who had 14 points and seven rebounds, clinched her team’s spot in the title game. Lebo had just enough time for a desperation heave that was well short.
“The play I drew up in the huddle was a dribble handoff or a dribble over to Punches, and I wanted Winters to screen and pop for a quick three if they switched,” Slater said. “We kind of went into scramble mode. Emmy, all week we worked on her attacking with the dribble on a mismatch, and she made a great play.”
Burlingame got off to a hot start, scoring 10 straight points after Jones, who led all scorers with 22 points, opened the game with an easy two. The Wolves struggled against the Bearcats’ full-court press, turning the ball over several times to kick-start Burlingame’s fast break.
Lebo trailed by 10 early in the second quarter when Abby Peek ended a nine-minute drought with a 3-pointer from the top of the key. The Wolves got as close as five points twice in the period and trailed 20-13 at the break.
Peek hit another trey to start the second half, and Lebo cut the deficit to 20-18 on a pair of free throws by Audrey Peek early in the third frame. Burlingame surged ahead again on a Daelyn Winters drive, Punches pullup and Kaylin Noonan free throw before the Wolves countered at the end of the quarter.
Leading 29-26 going into the final period, the Bearcats pushed the lead to 33-26 on a layup by Katie Shaffer. Lebo answered behind Jones, who scored on back-to-back possessions, to pull within 33-30.
Burlingame had several opportunities to the put the game in regulation, but the Bearcats struggled mightily at the foul line, missing several free throws in the fourth quarter en route to a 5-of-16 night.
Alli Moore drained an 18-footer from the baseline and hit one of two three throws in the closing minutes to tie the game at 37, where it stood going into overtime.
Lebo took its first lead since the opening moments of the first quarter on Demi Schrader’s long jumper 15 seconds into overtime, and Burlingame countered with a basket from Gracie Simmons.
Jones scored again with three minutes left for a 41-39 edge, and the Bearcats answered with a Winters free throw to close within one. On the next Lebo possession, Winters took a pass off a rebound from the free throw line, drove the length of the court, scored and was fouled with 2:27 remaining. Her free throw gave Burlingame a 43-41 advantage.
The teams traded scores until Jones’ final basket, tying the game at 45 and setting up Punches’ clutch play.
“Our girls made tough, winning plays down the stretch,” Slater said. “Our three seniors — Katie Shaffer, Megan Giffin and Emmy Punches — played like seniors down the stretch and made huge plays for us. Daelyn Winters is as fierce of a competitor I have ever coached. Her and-one layup in OT grabbed the momentum back for us, and we were able to hang on.
“Overall, great team win. We had three players who never came off the court tonight, played through our mistakes, battled foul trouble and still earned a tough gutsy win.”
Winters had 10 points, Giffin eight points and Noonan seven points for Burlingame. Audrey Peek had seven points and Abby Peek six points for Lebo.
BURLINGAME 47, LEBO 45 (OT)
Lebo 2 11 13 11 8 — 45
Burlingame 10 10 9 8 10 — 47
Lebo (16-5): Brooklyn Jones 9-14 4-5 22, Audrey Peek 2-9 2-2 7, Abby Peek 2-6 0-0 6, Alli Moore 1-7 4-5 6, Katie Ott 1-4 0-0 2, Chalie Crouch 1-1 0-0 2, Sydney Tollefson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 16-41 10-13 45.
Burlingame (20-2): Emily Punches 6-12 2-4 14, Daelyn Winters 4-10 2-3 10, Megan Giffin 4-9 0-0 8, Kaylin Noonan 3-5 1-4 7, Gracie Simmons 3-6 0-3 6, Katie Shaffer 1-3 0-2 2. Totals 21-45 5-16 47.
Three-pointers: Lebo 3-13 (Ab. Peek 2-4, Au. Peek 1-4, Moore 0-3, Jones 0-2); Burlingame 0-7 (Winters 0-4, Punches 0-2, Giffin 0-1). Rebounds – Lebo 21 (Jones 6); Burlingame 25 (Punches 7). Turnovers – Lebo 17; Burlingame 16. Fouled out – Ab. Peek, Noonan.