BIG GAME HUNTER
HUNTER WEBER hit several key shots in Hennessey’s area consolation championship win over Riverside. [Photo by Chris Simon/www.simon- sports-photos.smugmug.com]
Hennessey didn’t get back to state in the most difficult of ways.
But it also wasn’t the easiest. Hunter Weber made the goahead 3-pointer with 3:47 to play and the Eagles made six consecutive free throws in the final minute to down Riverside 49-43 Saturday in Cleveland.
The win gave Hennessey a Class 2A area consolation championship and locked up the Eagles’ berth in the state tournament for a second straight year.
It came one night after Hennessey was denied in its first attempt to reach state as it fell short in a 44-36 loss to No. 5 Preston.
That pitted the Eagles against No. 11 Riverside for the second time in a week.
“Coming back from a tough loss and beating a good team for the second time in a week,” said Hennessey coach Brady Page. “That’s really tough to do.”
It appeared as though the Eagles wouldn’t accomplish the feat. They trailed 29-23 at halftime against the Indians.
“They made a bunch of 3-pointers in the first half, so we switched to a junk defense in the second,” Page said.
Braedyn Richardson locked down the Indians’ best scorer and Hennessey went on a 12-4 run in the third quarter.
The Indians were able to reclaim the lead in the fourth until Weber’s late 3-pointer - his third of the game - put Hennessey up for good.
“He hit some big shots for us,” said Page.
Camdyn Richardson made two free throws with 1:00 left to give the Eagles a four-point lead.
Riverside cut it back to two, but Weber made it 47-43 with two more foul shots with 20 seconds to play.
Riverside turned it over on its next possession and James Sims sealed the game with free throws in the closing seconds.
Jael Torres also drew a charge during that stretch.
He led the Eagles with 17 points and seven rebounds.
Weber scored 15 while Camdyn Richardson chipped in 11 and Sims six.
Hennessey outscored Riverside 26-14 in the second half.
The Eagles were outscored 23-18 by the Pirates in Friday’s second half.
They trailed 30-29 after three quarters but scored just two field goals and went 2 of 4 from the foul line in the fourth.
Preston got its lead, then went 7 of 8 from the free throw line to claim the area title.
Weber scored 11 while Sims and Camdyn Richardson had 10 apiece.
Saturday’s win put the Eagles at 24-4 on the season.
They’ll play unranked Merritt at 9 p.m. Wednesday in the state quarterfinals at State Fair Arena.
Merritt (18-9) upset No. 3 Hooker in a regional semifinal, then beat unranked Crescent and Central (Sallisaw) en route to an area championship.
“They might not be ranked, but they’re still very solid, wellcoached and they’re playing well,” Page said.
The winner of the quarterfinal likely gets top-ranked, twotime defending state champion Dale in the semifinal.