BLOOMFIELD — The numbers heading into the Bernie vs. Oran Class 2 District 3 boys basketball game on Monday did lie, dismissing the adage that they never do.
However, in the end, all that mattered numerically to the Eagles was the 47-42 numbers on the scoreboard, which indicated that Oran would be moving on in the district tournament at Bloomfield High School.
“We played hard,” first-year Oran coach Corey Davis said after the victory. “The kids were all about hustling tonight.”
Oran (10-14) was the No. 6 seed entering this event while the Mules (15-8) were the No. 3 seed.
Bernie had won four of its final six regular-season contests while the Eagles had lost five of seven before Monday’s victory.
None of that mattered as Oran stymied the Mules defensively throughout the opening half.
“We just didn’t play very well,” Bernie coach Jason Long said. “We got off to a really good start in the first couple minutes but seemed to go downhill from there.”
Bernie trailed 14-11 early in the second quarter before the Eagle defense stiffened and limited the Mules to a mere six points (17 total) by halftime.
“The kids did a great job with the defensive gameplan,” Davis said. “And then finishing the (defensive) job with a rebound.”
Oran took a 26-17 lead into the second half but then the numbers began to skew back toward reality for both teams.
Bernie opened the third quarter with a 10-0 run to take a 27-26 lead, as Oran didn’t score a point until 2:08 remained in the third period.
“Our defensive rebounding began to suffer,” Davis said. “We’re going to be a much better team if we start our offense with a rebound.”
The Eagles led 33-31 early in the final quarter and the game remained close until the final seconds.
Oran got free throws late from Reid Hibbs and Cole Diebold while forward Carson Kern scored on a backdoor cut with under a minute remaining.
An and-one by Kern and a Bernie technical foul sealed the victory for the Eagles with eight seconds remaining.
“All the credit goes to those guys in the locker room,” Davis said of his players. “They kept us in it by getting g down on the defensive end and at least limited (Bernie’s) shots.”
Kern led his team with 28 points while Diebold (10 points) also contributed.
Bernie was led by center Jonathon Aycock with 16 points while Cane Hobgood (12) and Braxton Arnold (eight) were also productive.
The Eagles will play No. 2 seed Charleston (13-10) on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.
“Charleston will pressure you (defensively) and run (offensively),” Davis said. “They are going to try and get up after you defensively and they’re going to try and score in transition.”
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