It had the atmosphere of a regional showdown when 9th ranked Guthrie squared off with 5th ranked McGuinness in the semifinals of the 52nd annual McGuinness Classic.
In a game that featured six ties and 11 lead changes, the Irish outscored the Jays 10-6 in the final 1:18 to preserve a 54-50 win. McGuinness improves to 6-2 while Guthrie falls to 5-3.
McGuinness advances to the finals against Norman and Guthrie will challenge Deer Creek in the third place game beginning at 6:00. The game can be heard on Guthrie Sports Page.
Despite a slow start offensively, both teams got things going in the second half combining for 68 points after just 36 in the first half. The Jays jumped out to a 7-2 advantage in the first six-minutes of the game, but saw the Irish end the quarter with a 5-0 run to tie the game at 7-all.
McGuinness continued their run in the second quarter as Guthrie went 7:28 without a point. Junior Jerrick Warren’s field goal tied the game at 9-9 and the Jays outscored the Irish 13-7, including a three-point buzzer beater by Codee Gross, to take a 20-16 lead into the break.
The third quarter began the Matthew Ross show as the 6’4 Irish Center finished with 11 points alone in the frame to help out pace the Jays 18-13 in the quarter. Ross finished with a game high 19 points.
Guthrie built up two six-point leads early in the third, but only to see McGuinness take the lead two minutes later. However, for the third time in two games, Guthrie drilled a shot at the sound of the horn. This time, it was Shron Parker again with a jump shot from the free throw line just feet away from the spot he made the game winning shot the day before. The shot pulled Guthrie within one, 34-33.
The fourth quarter alone saw four lead changes, but the Irish grab the lead for good with 1:18 to play and built the lead as much as six, 50-44, under a minute to play.
Warren led the scoring ways for Guthrie with 15 points with Gross chipping in with 13 and Kai Callins with 11.
Guthrie Scorers: Jerrick Warren 15, Codee Gross 13, Kai Callins 11, Shron Parker 6, Bailey Nichols 2, L’liott Curry 2, JT McFadden 1
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