The boys basketball team was defeated by the Saint Ignatius Wildcats 76-60 on Friday night. Despite several strong runs, the Bears were unable to overcome early shooting struggles and the Wildcats’ consistent offense.
The game began with senior shooting guard Luca Auer snatching the ball after the tip-off to gain first possession. Senior point guard Jacob Sutton worked the ball around, trying to set an early rhythm for the Bears. After a missed shot attempt, Saint Ignatius took advantage of the opportunity and struck first with a quick bucket.
M-A remained aggressively offensively, with senior power forward Jerry Williams faking out defenders and Sutton relentlessly driving into the paint. After another narrow miss by the Bears, the Wildcats extended their advantage with an additional basket. Unfazed, Auer responded with a precise three-pointer to get the Bears on the board, narrowing the score to 5-3.
An M-A foul gave the Wildcats two easy free throws, allowing Saint Ignatius to extend their lead to 7-3.
Momentum began to shift in favor of the Bears as Williams was able to draw two fouls and drain all four free throws to tie the game 7-7, leaving just under two minutes left in the quarter.
However, Saint Ignatius bounced back with a three-pointer and another quick basket to regain control. In the final seconds of the quarter, senior center Will Abdella found Williams for a shot, but it was blocked at the buzzer, ending the quarter with the Bears down 15-9.
M-A went into the second quarter determined to close the gap. After the Wildcats began by sinking another three to push the lead to 18-9, Sutton came up with a massive save to keep the ball in bounds and nail an impressive shot to narrow the lead, 18-11.
Following an M-A timeout with six minutes remaining, the intensity ramped up with Abdella picking up a foul that allowed the Wildcats to extend their lead to 22-11. However, the Bears refused to back down, and a well-orchestrated passing sequence found Sutton for an easy bucket. On the next possession, Auer fired a shot that missed, but Abdella showcased his dominance by securing an offensive rebound and putback to cut the lead to 22-15.
In the following minutes, the Bears faced a brief dry spell offensively, with their shots landing just off the mark. Even so, Abdella continued to fight and get back-to-back offensive rebounds during this stretch to keep the intensity on offense.
To end the drought, Auer battled through heavy contact on a drive to draw a foul and execute two perfect free throws, cutting M-A’s deficit to 28-19. The Bears fought to end the half strong, with Sutton making his way through the paint for a tough finish to bring the score to 31-21. After a quick response by the Wildcats, Sutton then nailed a wide-open jump shot with just under a minute left, 33-25.
With 12 seconds remaining, junior point guard Trgz Labson drew a foul and calmly sank both free throws, ending the half with the Bears down 37-27.
The third quarter opened with Auer sinking a three-pointer less than a minute in. Building off this, Williams wove through a crowd of defenders for a layup to cut the Bears’ deficit to 39-32.
Both teams continued to battle tooth and nail for every possession, showcasing great intensity and grit. Two impressive back-to-back plays from Auer, including a smooth reverse layup, pushed the tally to 44-36.
Adding to the Bears’ run, Williams continued to hunt for second-chance points, following up a missed shot from Sutton with a perfectly timed tip-in to narrow the gap to 44-38. Despite an M-A timeout to reorganize, Saint Ignatius refused to give the Bears any leeway and sank back-to-back threes to push their lead to 50-38.
However, the Bears continued to fight to stay in the game. Williams converted on free throws with two minutes left, and soon after, Auer sank two more to bring the score to 52-41. Williams closed the quarter with two final free throws, cutting the deficit to 52-45 and giving the Bears hope heading into the final quarter.
Starting off the fourth quarter strong, Winters electrified the M-A crowd by sprinting the length of the court for a fast break layup. Despite this, foul trouble began to plague the Bears, and Williams eventually fouled out with 4:40 left in the game.
Saint Ignatius took advantage of the bonus, hitting several free throws, and added on a pair of transition buckets to push their lead to 64-49. Auer continued to drive powerfully to the basket and score off versatile moves, giving the Bears hope of a comeback.
Even so, the Wildcats answered with a barrage of deep threes and fast-break buckets to pull away, 68-51.
In the last few minutes, the Bears were unable to close this deficit, ending in a 76-60 loss for M-A.
“The intensity, the stretches where we communicated and got stops showed how we can play,” Abdella said.
“Being a senior, I never know when I’m not gonna get these moments anymore so my favorite part is just being out there through the ups and downs,” Sutton said.
The Bears will take the fight to Archbishop Mitty on Monday at 7:30 p.m.
