MADISON - It turns out it was not Darlington's destiny to win the Division 4 state title this year.
The second-ranked Redbirds trimmed a double-digit deficit down two points with less than 6 minutes to play, but the top-ranked Destiny Eagles closed the game on a 21-2 scoring run en route to a 76-55 victory in the WIAA Division 4 boys basketball state championship game Saturday at the Kohl Center.
It was Darlington's only loss of the season.
"We gave it everything we had. Destiny's a helluva team. Hats off to them. They played well. We just didn't hit quite enough shots," said Darlington coach Tom Uppena, who led the Redbirds to the title game in his first season at the helm. "I wish I could have gotten this for the seniors."
After finishing second in the state football finals the past four seasons with many of the Redbirds' nine seniors on the roster, silver was not the color trophy Darlington was hoping to bring home from its first state basketball tournament appearance since winning the Class C title in 1990.
"Obviously, it's not the color trophy we wanted, but I felt we played a pretty good game against a team who was a lot bigger and more athletic than us," Darlington senior guard Ryan Glendenning said. "It is what it is. We had a great season all in all. Any time you get to play at Camp Randall four years in a row and now at the Kohl Center, it's pretty special. Both have always been dreams of ours and we're living them, so it's been awesome even though none of the games finished the way we wanted them to."
Led by an all-senior starting lineup featuring three players 6-foot-5 or taller, Destiny (25-1), an independent Christian High School with an enrollment of 296 located in Milwaukee, had the size, speed and athleticism to challenge the senior-led Redbirds (27-1) all over the court. Darlington's five starters are all 6-2 and under.
"We haven't seen a team even close to that all year, and when you only have one day to prepare it's really tough," Uppena said. "I'm proud of the kids for coming out and battling like they did. I just wish we could have brought home a different color ball."
The Redbirds traded the lead with the Eagles in the opening minutes, going up 3-2 on a layup by senior guard Will Schwartz and extending the lead to 5-2 on a pair of free throws by Glendenning with 15:32 remaining in the first half.
An 8-0 scoring burst by Destiny - punctuated by an alley-oop slam dunk by senior Terrance Banyard - put the Eagles ahead to stay. It became a game of catch-up from there as the Eagles used their size on both ends of the floor to maintain their lead.
Banyard finished with a game-high 22 points and had four steals to lead Destiny. Sarion McGee had a double-double with 14 points and 14 rebounds, while junior Diovonte Caldwell came off the bench for 14 points, and Romaine Robinson added nine points, all in the second half.
"We adjusted and did some things to try and slow them down as much as possible. They rebounded so well. It was hard to keep them off the glass, especially when you're undersized like us," Uppena said.
The Redbirds got back within three points on three occasions until the Eagles reeled off 11 straight points to extend their lead to 25-11 with 8:36 to go in the half. It was the most points the Redbirds had trailed by in any game this season.
"We needed to settle down a little bit. We didn't come out with the same composure that we did against Cameron. I think we were a little jittery," Uppena said. "We didn't make a lot of shots either, and we didn't do a good job of stopping their transition either. That's how they got out to their big lead."
Darlington closed the half on a 16-7 run to narrow the gap to 34-29 by the break. Senior guard Trevor Johnson scored all six of his points during the run to lead the rally. Senior forward Hunter Johnson added four points, while Schwartz, Glendenning and senior center Josh Soper each scored a layup during the run.
"They had some great shot blockers, but we had to keep taking it strong at them," Schwartz said. "We were down big, but I knew the whole time that this group of seniors weren't going to give up. We came back and showed we could play with them."
Soper brought the Redbirds back within five points on a layup to start the second half, but the Eagles poured in the next six points to push the lead back to double digits just 3 minutes into the period.
The Destiny lead hovered around 10 until Schwartz and Glendenning sparked a 14-6 scoring run to bring the Redbirds back within one possession. Schwartz sank a free throw and had two layups during the run, while Glendenning sank a pair of 3-pointers, including one that made it 55-53 with 5:37 remaining.
"I was proud of our kids for fighting and not giving up," Uppena said. "When you're that close, it's one bucket here or one bucket there. If you can get the lead, the whole game changes and how it plays out changes. One more shot goes, and I think I like our chances to come out on top. We just didn't get the rolls today."
The Eagles built the lead back to nine on a layup and another dunk by Banyard with 2:19 to play. Schwartz got it back to 62-55 on a pair of free throws with 2:03 to play, however with time running down the Redbirds were forced to take some chances, which led to four turnovers and a 14-0 run by Destiny to end the game.
With the game well in hand, the Eagles didn't ease up. Banyard put an exclamation point on Destiny's first-ever state title with a pair of dunks in the final 30 seconds, and Caldwell added a breakaway layup with 2 seconds left to make the final score 76-55.
"We fought to the end," Darlington senior Hunter Johnson said. "The score is a lot further apart that what the game really was. It's just the way things turned out. I'm proud to have played with these guys since second grade. It's something a lot of people here can't say they did."
Schwartz agreed with his long-time teammate.
"This year was the cherry on top of everything we've been doing," Schwartz said. "We've played together for so long. Ending our season at state, there's nothing to hang our heads about. It's been a great journey. I want to thank the coaches and everybody in the community. It's been awesome. Not much can replace this."
Darlington was outscored 44-28 in the paint and 22-13 on second-chance points, while Destiny's bench outscored the Redbirds' bench 27-0 in the game.
"The toughest thing about playing them was that they were big, so you have to compensate for that, but they have good shooters, too, so it's not like you can pack everyone in the lane," Glendenning said.
Destiny shot over 48 percent (31-for-64) for the game. Darlington connected on 33 percent (19-for-58) of its shots from the field, including a 9-for-31 effort in the second half. The Redbirds went 0-for-7 from beyond the 3-point arc in the first half and finished 3-for-22 from long range on the day.
Schwartz finished with a double-double for the Redbirds, scoring a team-high 18 points and pulling down a team-high 10 rebounds in his final game. He closes his career 45 points shy of 1,000.
Glendenning chipped in 16 points, seven rebounds, three assists and a steal. Hunter Johnson tallied eight points, five assists, four boards and three steals; Soper added seven points and nine rebounds; and Trevor Johnson netted six points with two assists.
Joining those five playing their final prep game at the Kohl Center were fellow seniors Chad Golackson, Brayden McDonald, Hayden Hardyman and Mason Stone.
"That's one heck of a group of seniors. Those kids are amazing. They play so well together, they play so hard and their basketball IQ is through the roof," said Uppena about a senior class that went 66-11 on the court in its varsity career. "They have given everything they have to this program. I can't thank them enough for how they made the community, the school and their parents feel. It's been one heck of a ride. I'm thankful to be a part of something this special."
The second-ranked Redbirds trimmed a double-digit deficit down two points with less than 6 minutes to play, but the top-ranked Destiny Eagles closed the game on a 21-2 scoring run en route to a 76-55 victory in the WIAA Division 4 boys basketball state championship game Saturday at the Kohl Center.
It was Darlington's only loss of the season.
"We gave it everything we had. Destiny's a helluva team. Hats off to them. They played well. We just didn't hit quite enough shots," said Darlington coach Tom Uppena, who led the Redbirds to the title game in his first season at the helm. "I wish I could have gotten this for the seniors."
After finishing second in the state football finals the past four seasons with many of the Redbirds' nine seniors on the roster, silver was not the color trophy Darlington was hoping to bring home from its first state basketball tournament appearance since winning the Class C title in 1990.
"Obviously, it's not the color trophy we wanted, but I felt we played a pretty good game against a team who was a lot bigger and more athletic than us," Darlington senior guard Ryan Glendenning said. "It is what it is. We had a great season all in all. Any time you get to play at Camp Randall four years in a row and now at the Kohl Center, it's pretty special. Both have always been dreams of ours and we're living them, so it's been awesome even though none of the games finished the way we wanted them to."
Led by an all-senior starting lineup featuring three players 6-foot-5 or taller, Destiny (25-1), an independent Christian High School with an enrollment of 296 located in Milwaukee, had the size, speed and athleticism to challenge the senior-led Redbirds (27-1) all over the court. Darlington's five starters are all 6-2 and under.
"We haven't seen a team even close to that all year, and when you only have one day to prepare it's really tough," Uppena said. "I'm proud of the kids for coming out and battling like they did. I just wish we could have brought home a different color ball."
The Redbirds traded the lead with the Eagles in the opening minutes, going up 3-2 on a layup by senior guard Will Schwartz and extending the lead to 5-2 on a pair of free throws by Glendenning with 15:32 remaining in the first half.
An 8-0 scoring burst by Destiny - punctuated by an alley-oop slam dunk by senior Terrance Banyard - put the Eagles ahead to stay. It became a game of catch-up from there as the Eagles used their size on both ends of the floor to maintain their lead.
Banyard finished with a game-high 22 points and had four steals to lead Destiny. Sarion McGee had a double-double with 14 points and 14 rebounds, while junior Diovonte Caldwell came off the bench for 14 points, and Romaine Robinson added nine points, all in the second half.
"We adjusted and did some things to try and slow them down as much as possible. They rebounded so well. It was hard to keep them off the glass, especially when you're undersized like us," Uppena said.
The Redbirds got back within three points on three occasions until the Eagles reeled off 11 straight points to extend their lead to 25-11 with 8:36 to go in the half. It was the most points the Redbirds had trailed by in any game this season.
"We needed to settle down a little bit. We didn't come out with the same composure that we did against Cameron. I think we were a little jittery," Uppena said. "We didn't make a lot of shots either, and we didn't do a good job of stopping their transition either. That's how they got out to their big lead."
Darlington closed the half on a 16-7 run to narrow the gap to 34-29 by the break. Senior guard Trevor Johnson scored all six of his points during the run to lead the rally. Senior forward Hunter Johnson added four points, while Schwartz, Glendenning and senior center Josh Soper each scored a layup during the run.
"They had some great shot blockers, but we had to keep taking it strong at them," Schwartz said. "We were down big, but I knew the whole time that this group of seniors weren't going to give up. We came back and showed we could play with them."
Soper brought the Redbirds back within five points on a layup to start the second half, but the Eagles poured in the next six points to push the lead back to double digits just 3 minutes into the period.
The Destiny lead hovered around 10 until Schwartz and Glendenning sparked a 14-6 scoring run to bring the Redbirds back within one possession. Schwartz sank a free throw and had two layups during the run, while Glendenning sank a pair of 3-pointers, including one that made it 55-53 with 5:37 remaining.
"I was proud of our kids for fighting and not giving up," Uppena said. "When you're that close, it's one bucket here or one bucket there. If you can get the lead, the whole game changes and how it plays out changes. One more shot goes, and I think I like our chances to come out on top. We just didn't get the rolls today."
The Eagles built the lead back to nine on a layup and another dunk by Banyard with 2:19 to play. Schwartz got it back to 62-55 on a pair of free throws with 2:03 to play, however with time running down the Redbirds were forced to take some chances, which led to four turnovers and a 14-0 run by Destiny to end the game.
With the game well in hand, the Eagles didn't ease up. Banyard put an exclamation point on Destiny's first-ever state title with a pair of dunks in the final 30 seconds, and Caldwell added a breakaway layup with 2 seconds left to make the final score 76-55.
"We fought to the end," Darlington senior Hunter Johnson said. "The score is a lot further apart that what the game really was. It's just the way things turned out. I'm proud to have played with these guys since second grade. It's something a lot of people here can't say they did."
Schwartz agreed with his long-time teammate.
"This year was the cherry on top of everything we've been doing," Schwartz said. "We've played together for so long. Ending our season at state, there's nothing to hang our heads about. It's been a great journey. I want to thank the coaches and everybody in the community. It's been awesome. Not much can replace this."
Darlington was outscored 44-28 in the paint and 22-13 on second-chance points, while Destiny's bench outscored the Redbirds' bench 27-0 in the game.
"The toughest thing about playing them was that they were big, so you have to compensate for that, but they have good shooters, too, so it's not like you can pack everyone in the lane," Glendenning said.
Destiny shot over 48 percent (31-for-64) for the game. Darlington connected on 33 percent (19-for-58) of its shots from the field, including a 9-for-31 effort in the second half. The Redbirds went 0-for-7 from beyond the 3-point arc in the first half and finished 3-for-22 from long range on the day.
Schwartz finished with a double-double for the Redbirds, scoring a team-high 18 points and pulling down a team-high 10 rebounds in his final game. He closes his career 45 points shy of 1,000.
Glendenning chipped in 16 points, seven rebounds, three assists and a steal. Hunter Johnson tallied eight points, five assists, four boards and three steals; Soper added seven points and nine rebounds; and Trevor Johnson netted six points with two assists.
Joining those five playing their final prep game at the Kohl Center were fellow seniors Chad Golackson, Brayden McDonald, Hayden Hardyman and Mason Stone.
"That's one heck of a group of seniors. Those kids are amazing. They play so well together, they play so hard and their basketball IQ is through the roof," said Uppena about a senior class that went 66-11 on the court in its varsity career. "They have given everything they have to this program. I can't thank them enough for how they made the community, the school and their parents feel. It's been one heck of a ride. I'm thankful to be a part of something this special."
