Solon hangs with top-seeded Chariton before falling

DES MOINES — In their hearts, they really, truly, honestly believed they could win.

Watching the Solon Spartans play most of their Class 3A state basketball tournament quarterfinal Tuesday afternoon, how could you blame them? They played Chariton to a virtual draw through the first three quarters.

The top-seeded Chargers did what was expected and finally pulled away in the fourth for a 64-50 win at Wells Fargo Arena.

'My guys came to compete, and I cannot fault their effort,' Solon Coach Jason Pershing said. 'The stage wasn't too big for them. We showed up and scared the number one seed.'

For sure. It was difficult to tell which team came in with a 10-14 record and which one was 23-1.

A transition bucket by sophomore guard Luke Ira put Solon on top with 1:56 left in the third, 38-35, but those were the last Spartans points until Brevin Hill scored on an inside hoop with 4:07 left in the fourth. Do the math there, and that's a drought of 5:49.

Chariton went on a 13-0 run during that time, and that was ballgame.

'We really had a poor performance overall,' said Solon's Streeter McIlravy, who suffered through a 1-for-12 shooting game. He scored six points, 10 under his average.

'At the end of the third quarter, we were only down one, so we had every opportunity to win,' he said. 'Some things just went the other direction. We missed some shots, and that's just the way the game went. They're a really good team, but I really do believe we could have won that game.'

'A couple of weeks ago, we didn't think we'd be here, honestly,' said Hill, who had a team-best 16 points. 'Once we made it here, we honestly felt we could make a run.'

Solon lost its final nine regular-season games, but something clicked once the postseason arrived. Wins over DeWitt Central and Davenport Assumption gave the Spartans a district championship, then they stunned rival Mount Vernon in substate.

'We came in thinking we could win,' Hill said. 'After Mount Vernon, we gained a lot of confidence. We thought coming in here, it was a good matchup for us. We really felt good about it.'

Iowa Hawkeyes football recruit T.J. Hockenson was a literal load inside in the first half, using his big 6-foot-6 frame to muscle his way to 12 points. But it was mostly forward Lim Chuol and guard Daric Laing who ignited Chariton's tell-tale run.

Chuol had 16 points and 11 rebounds, tremendously active inside. Laing had 16 of his 22 points in the second half. Hockenson finished with 18 points.

'This means everything to us,' Ira said. 'Because no one thought we'd be here in the first place. We proved people wrong.'

'It was an awesome experience,' McIlravy said. 'This was the stage every player wants to play on.'

AT DES MOINES

SOLON (50): Jacob Coons 4-10 0-0 9, Brevin Hill 7-14 2-2 16, Streeter McIlravy 1-12 4-6 6, Ben Krutzfeld 2-5 0-0 5, Luke Ira 2-5 2-2 6, Dylan Doyle 0-0 0-0 0, Sterling McIlravy 3-4 0-0 6, Anthony Bullard 0-0 0-0 0, Jack Stahle 0-0 0-0 0, Ethan Yahr 0-0 0-0 0, Halston Durr 0-3 0-0 0, Andrew Steffens 0-1 0-0 0, Zach Cusick 0-0 0-0 0, Adam Runyan 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 20-56 8-10 50.

CHARITON (64): Lim Chuol 7-11 2-5 16, Bradley Krutsinger 0-1 0-0 0, Aaron Cain 0-2 2-2 2, T.J. Hockenson 7-14 4-6 18, Daric Laing 8-19 5-7 22, Dylan Stites 2-5 0-0 6, Kobey Riechmann 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 24-53 13-20 64.

Halftime — Chariton 23, Solon 22. 3-point goals — Solon 2-14 (Coons 1-4, Hill 0-2, Krutzfeld 1-4, Str. McIlravy 0-1, Ira 0-2, Durr 0-1), Chariton 3-18 (Laing 1-9, Cain 0-2, Chuol 0-1, Stites 2-5, Riechmann 0-1). Rebounds — Solon 36 (Coons, Hill 7), Chariton 32 (Chuol 11). Total fouls — Solon 21, Chariton 8. Fouled out — Str. McIlravy. Turnovers — Solon 14, Chariton 9.

l Comments: (319) 398-8259; jeff.johnson@thegazette.com