Titan boys fall in overtime to Spearfish in SoDak16 match-up
It was a back and forth battle on Saturday, March 8 in Spearfish as the Tea Area High School boys’ basketball team battled with the Spartans in the SoDak 16 match-up for the right to go to the Class AA State Tournament.
Spearfish and Tea Area traded basket for basket most of the second quarter before the Titans went on a 6-0 run to take the 21-18 lead at the half.
Tea Area continued to roll in the third, stretching their lead to 27-20 midway through the third quarter. In the fourth, the Titans rattled off another 6-0 to take a nice lead; however a key three by Spearfish kept them in it. Spearfish scored five straight points to take the lead with less than 30 seconds left in the game but Tea Area’s free throw forced overtime.
In overtime, the Titans were unable to get it going, scoring just three points, allowing Spearfish to escape with the 54-48 win, sending them to the State AA Tournament for the first time since 2013. The Titans finished their first year in Class AA with a 10-11 record.
“This is a loss that will sting for a long, long time. Our boys played their hearts out in this game and all season, but it just wasn’t meant to be. We give a lot of credit to Spearfish as they really took advantage of getting to play at home. They filled the arena to the brim and they were certainly more comfortable shooting in their gym than we were,” said Titan head coach Drew Weber. “Every time it felt like we were going to take command of the game, they would hit a tough shot and that’s really what it takes. I couldn’t be more proud of our players for the season that they had, both on and off the court. I am truly blessed to get to coach this group and we look forward to what’s to come.”
Against Spearfish, Gavin Shawd led the Titans with 19 points. He also grabbed two rebounds and had one assist and three steals. Grifin Wiebenga finished the night with 17 points, three rebounds, and one assist. Marshall Smythe scored five points, led the team in rebounds with seven and in assists with six in the game. Jaxson Merrigan finished with four points, four rebounds and one steal. Mitch Grant had three points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal.
Rylan Norris finished with one rebound and Kayden Williamson pulled down three rebounds and had one steal for the Titans.
Spearfish will face off against top seeded Sioux Falls Lincoln in the first game of the Class AA State Tournament, set to begin next week, Thursday, March 20 at The Monument Summit Arena in Rapid City.
Other match-ups in the 2025 State AA Tournament include the following: No. 4 Mitchell vs. No. 5 Huron; No. 2 Brandon Valley vs. No. 10 Sioux Falls Jefferson; and No. 3 Harrisburg vs. No. 6 Sioux Falls O’Gorman. The Tournament continues on March 21 and concludes on March 22.
A complete bracket can be found below.