CUBA CITY — Buzzer beaters continue to be the bane of the Redbirds. Darlington suffered its third loss this season, and second on a shot as time expired, at Cuba City on Jan. 17, 60-58.

The unranked Cubans (9-4, 6-2 SWAL) kept the No. 10 Redbirds (10-3, 6-2) on their heels early, claiming a 9-0 lead over the opening 2:40. The quick burst prompted a Darlington timeout, and the stoppage was effective for the traveling squad.

“We knew it would be a tough game in a tough environment, and in these types of games, it comes down to the little things,” Redbirds head coach Tom Uppena said. “There were a lot of plays throughout the course of the game that could have gone differently to help us get the win.

Zeke Zuberbuhler took advantage of defensive confusion from Cuba City. He rolled around Broker Buschor, with defenders on each sticking with senior Buschor. The ball landed in Zuberbuhler’s hands outside the arc, turning into a catch-and-release that was all net.

Ryder Fitzsimons was next, hitting a lightly-contested three as an answer to a Cuban two. Buschor followed with a layup to keep pace with another host team field goal, and Grady O’Brien sank consecutive threes, handing Darlington a 14-13 advantage.

O’Brien’s name was announced a third time for the Redbirds with a 3-pointer at 10:51 after a Cuba City two, and Darlington maintained the lead-or-tie to the 5:35-mark. A lead-change favoring the Cubans with a free throw signaled the final handoff of the half, though the Redbirds stayed within five points to the final buzzer. A 35-34 split was the mark at the half.

Both teams came out of the break ready to fight. 

Cagyn Paisley was left wide open outside the arc, draining a shot  three minutes into the second to gain a slim lead, 39-38, and two free throws from Buschor moved the advantage to three points.

Cuba City regained the lead, and held it until Buschor made a three with room to spare with under five minutes to play. The Cubans tied the game up at 54-54 by making one-of-two shots at the free throw line. Buschor and Dante Glendenning each made a field goal to earn a 58-54 lead for Darlington. Unfortunately, the latter’s putback with 2:58 to play would be the final basket of the night for the Redbirds.

The host squad tied the matchup with 56.9 on the clock thanks to a three, and the game appeared to advance to overtime. Following a timeout, Darlington was intent on having the last shot or taking the game to overtime. Taggart Gille dribbled the ball near the top of the Redbirds’ court until 13.8 seconds remained and Uppena called a timeout. 

After a pair of passes, Zuberbuhler released a three with almost no coverage. The ball almost fell through, but a pair of bounces on the rim had other plans, and Cuba City got the ball after it fell out of bounds with 3.2 seconds to play.

In a play reminiscent of Darlington’s home loss to Mineral Point a month prior, the Cubans in-bounded the ball with less time to play, and one player ran the ball down the court, and released a layup with 0.1 to play. As with the Redbirds’ prior loss, the shot fell through, ending the game.

“I was obviously disappointed in the outcome, but I have to give a lot of credit to Cuba City,” Uppena said. “They outplayed and out-coached us. We’ve had three close losses that came down to the final play. Hopefully we can figure out how to win these games before the season is over.”