When top teams play each other there are two likely outcomes, the first is that both teams are ready for the challenge and a great game ensues. The second is that one of the teams isn't able to handle the pressure and comes up well short. No doubt there are other possibilities but I would say that those are the most common results.
So when the Davies Eagles made their way to Sheyenne High I was curious to see which of the two outcomes would get played out. No spoilers, but the answer was very clear once the final horn sounded!
Let me borrow another generalization about the game of Basketball. It's a game of runs. Well, generalizations and cliché's exist because they're so often accurate and that one describes very well how the top five showdown played out. Davies came out of the locker room looking to get a big lead early so that they could take all question out about who's best in the East.
But 36 minutes of play allows for a lot to happen and before half of the first elapsed the Mustangs clawed their way back into the game, even taking the lead.
The ebb and flow of the game went back towards Davies before the 18 minutes of play had concluded, leaving them up five and able to talk through what they could do to increase their lead.
After the break, both teams scored at a much higher rate. Maybe it was due to more crisp play but there were still errors that could have been avoided. Maybe it was due to an increase in the number of shooting fouls and total fouls that were called. I but that one to a certain extent but my guess is that each team felt even more pressure to get the win so both of their defense's suffered. That's far from an encouraging sign out of two of the teams state title contenders but is in line with the way that Basketball is played these days.
But I digress. About six minutes into the second half I was thinking that if Davies could get a double digit lead, it would be enough to secure the victory. Not long after that they notched the ten point lead, even pushing it as high as 14 on a couple different occasions.
Even with that lead though I thought that the home team would be able to make one more offensive push toward victory. Get a stop, score a bucket. That's easier said than done though.
With time running down on their chance to hand FDHS their second loss of the season, it began to play out that way for the Mustangs. With just over four minutes to go in the game a rainbow three pointer from the left wing change the energy in the gym.
After a quick sprint down on defense the Stang's had the ball back and ordered up a second shot from the same spot. MONEY! The pendulum of momentum started swing back their way in winning time and the whole gym started to get their playoff energy up.
A third consecutive possession and the ball found it's way into the hands of Keaton Ballestad. Without hesitation he rose for a third consecutive triple, getting fouled in the process, and the shot was good!!
The ensuing free throw rolled off the rim to the right and the in scrum for the rebound Ballestad flew in and got his own put back. A five point play, never have I ever seen that before - until last night!
So how would the #1 team in the state respond? By continuing to fight and making their free throw attempts. You see even for all the momentum that Sheyenne had taken back they were struggling to get over the one possession deficit.
And that was Davies saving grace. By having the lead they knew that eventually the Mustangs would turn to the follow game. It started with just under a minute to go in the game. Even though the Blue & Orange continued to hit shots, their guests continued to make their free throws. So the game slowed down but the drama never abated!
Until a mere 2.1 seconds remained in the game. It was at that point that Davies finally managed to ice it from the charity stripe.
It became a playoff game for both teams and easily ranks as one of the best neutral's that I've seen yet. Now the Eagles have a day to move on and get ready for a face off with the other West Fargo school. I knew it would be a make or break week of action for the top team in Class A but I wouldn't have guessed at such a great start to it, from an independent fan's perspective! Hopefully game two can have just as much drama and excitement!!
