'Tough' Brandywine grinds out MHSAA district title win over White Pigeon

WHITE PIGEON — Survive and advance.

It didn’t look pretty for No. 1 Brandywine for stretches of the game Friday, but the Bobcats found a way to grind out a 56-47 victory over White Pigeon to win the Division 3, District 79 final on the Chiefs’ home court. It’s the second-straight district championship for Brandywine.

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“Take nothing away from White Pigeon: that’s a heck of a ball club over there,” Brandywine coach Nathan Knapp said. “They battled us. … The kids found a way to win, but it wasn’t the prettiest. But you know what? They’re tough.”

White Pigeon (17-5) looked like it had one last run in them late, cutting the deficit to 53-47 with two minutes to go. With the crowd at full throat, Bobcat senior Robert Whiting made sure to silence the ones wearing red and white by burying a ‘3’, leading to an eruption from those in maroon and gold.

“Coach always tells me to shoot with confidence, even though we were up by that much,” Whiting said. “I was wide open, so I just took that shot because I have confidence in myself. … We really weren’t hitting a lot of ‘3’s’, so when I took that ‘3’, they probably thought I was going to miss it and it was going to help them out.”

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Fifteen seconds later, the Chiefs turned the ball over. They tried to keep fouling to extend the game, but coach Shawn Strawser wove the proverbial white flag with 25 seconds remaining, letting Brandywine (21-3) dribble out the clock for the win.

The Bobcats did not make a field goal in the first five minutes of the game, managing only a pair of free throws to trail, 7-2. Fortunes finally changed when sophomore Nylen Goins knocked down back-to-back three-point shots, propelling Brandywine to a lead they’d never relinquish. They’d lead, 14-9, after the first frame.

“We didn’t shoot well, and then we didn’t attack the basket either,” Knapp said. “And then when we did attack it, we were missing layups. I think it was more mental than anything. We started missing stuff, and we just weren’t doing the things we always do. It took its toll on us.”

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Brandywine’s lead didn’t reach double digits for the first time until early in the third quarter. The largest margin was 12, going up 45-33 in the late stages of the third before taking a 45-36 advantage to the fourth.

Goins finished with a team-high 15 points. Senior Byron Linley had 10, Whiting, senior Jamier Palmer and senior Jaremiah Palmer nine points each and senior Brock Dye four. Jaremiah Palmer also had 10 rebounds, while Jamier Palmer and Linley had three assists a piece.

There wasn’t much of a celebration from Brandywine afterwards, even with Knapp’s four-year-old grandson, Kenzo, presenting the district championship trophy to the team.

“We didn’t really play our game, so everyone’s upset we didn’t play how we wanted to play,” Whiting said. “We just want to keep winning and keep going onto the next round. We got this one, now it’s onto the next.”

Brandywine will face Union City (16-9) in a regional semifinal game at 5 p.m. Tuesday at Watervliet High School. The second semifinal that night pits No. 13 Watervliet (19-5) and No. 3 Schoolcraft (21-3). The championship game is scheduled for Thursday at Watervliet.

Niles falls to Benton Harbor in D2 District final

In a rematch of last year’s district championship, Benton Harbor was able to get revenge on Niles, beating the Vikings, 58-48, in the Division 2, District 48 final.

The game was tied at 31 going into the fourth quarter. The Tigers scored the first five points of the final frame to take its first lead of the game and never trailed again. Niles held a 10-5 lead through one quarter and 22-16 lead at halftime.

Antwan Callahan had 21 points to pace Benton Harbor, including a ‘3’ at the third quarter buzzer to force the tie going into the fourth. Mike Phillips had 19 points to lead Niles, which finishes with a 19-6 record.

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: 'Tough' Brandywine grinds out MHSAA district title win over White Pigeon