BLANCHARDVILLE - Barneveld senior Jacob Slaney scored a game-high 18 points and the Golden Eagles cruised to a 70-44 win over Pecatonica in a WIAA Division 5 regional championship Saturday.
Barneveld (17-8), the Six Rivers East Conference co-champions with Pecatonica, raced out to a 38-18 lead at the half. Barneveld senior Kauy Fargo added 17 points.
Barneveld, the defending Division 5 state champions, are looking to make a run back to the Kohl Center. It's the second time Barneveld has defeated Pecatonica in three meetings this season.
"They really couldn't miss," Pecatonica coach Matt Fink said. "We played some man defense and we tried some zone stuff against them, and they just shot us out of the zone. It's as well as a team has played against us all year. We didn't play our best game. I think they outplayed us in all phases of the game. We had no answers."
Barneveld junior Malcolm Reed and senior Jonas Ignatius each added 11 points. Ignatius hit three 3s in the first half, and Slaney scored on numerous layups inside.
"He (Ignatius) was the guy who really shot us out of it," Fink said of the zone. "He was shooting the ball really well. Slaney was making layups, and they complimented each other inside and outside. That was the difference."
Pecatonica junior Everett Johnson scored a team-high 13 points and knocked down three 3s. Junior teammate Colton Schraepfer added 12 points and hit two 3s. With the loss, Pecatonica finishes the season 17-8.
Pecatonica returns most of its team next season.
"I told the guys we have to learn from it and get back," Fink said. "We had a lot of injuries this year and we were still able to win a share of the conference. When we come back next year, we have a conference title to defend. It hurts right now. It only hurts in the future if we don't get better from it."
With the win, third-seeded Barneveld advances to play top-seeded Deerfield (21-4) in a sectional semifinal at 7 p.m. Thursday at Evansville High School.
Barneveld (17-8), the Six Rivers East Conference co-champions with Pecatonica, raced out to a 38-18 lead at the half. Barneveld senior Kauy Fargo added 17 points.
Barneveld, the defending Division 5 state champions, are looking to make a run back to the Kohl Center. It's the second time Barneveld has defeated Pecatonica in three meetings this season.
"They really couldn't miss," Pecatonica coach Matt Fink said. "We played some man defense and we tried some zone stuff against them, and they just shot us out of the zone. It's as well as a team has played against us all year. We didn't play our best game. I think they outplayed us in all phases of the game. We had no answers."
Barneveld junior Malcolm Reed and senior Jonas Ignatius each added 11 points. Ignatius hit three 3s in the first half, and Slaney scored on numerous layups inside.
"He (Ignatius) was the guy who really shot us out of it," Fink said of the zone. "He was shooting the ball really well. Slaney was making layups, and they complimented each other inside and outside. That was the difference."
Pecatonica junior Everett Johnson scored a team-high 13 points and knocked down three 3s. Junior teammate Colton Schraepfer added 12 points and hit two 3s. With the loss, Pecatonica finishes the season 17-8.
Pecatonica returns most of its team next season.
"I told the guys we have to learn from it and get back," Fink said. "We had a lot of injuries this year and we were still able to win a share of the conference. When we come back next year, we have a conference title to defend. It hurts right now. It only hurts in the future if we don't get better from it."
With the win, third-seeded Barneveld advances to play top-seeded Deerfield (21-4) in a sectional semifinal at 7 p.m. Thursday at Evansville High School.
