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Another close game for Linn-Mar, another close win
Lions rally to win at Cedar Rapids Xavier, 62-59
Dec. 9, 2023 1:19 am, Updated: Dec. 9, 2023 9:27 am
CEDAR RAPIDS - You approached Chris Robertson postgame, and he just rolled his eyes and shook his head.
“I don’t know how we won,” the Linn-Mar boys’ basketball coach said after his Lions rallied to topple Cedar Rapids Xavier, 62-59, Friday night at Xavier’s Ron Thillen Gymnasium.
To be specific, Linn-Mar got tying and go-ahead free throws from Owen Havlik with 14.3 seconds left, then a pair of insurance free throws from Mason Matson with .9 to go. In between, Davis Kern blocked a shot off a baseline drive by Xavier’s Dominic D’Amico.
Coming up clutch at clutch time.
“It was a grind and some of that fourth quarter was a blur,” Robertson said. “We kept fighting, and the guys made some good plays down the stretch, which really, really helped. What a battle. I’ll have to watch the film to see how we came out on top.”
Xavier (3-1) led by as many as nine points in the second half and was up 48-41 after three quarters. But Linn-Mar (3-0) chipped away and chipped away.
A Kern steal and dunk put the Lions on top, 58-57, with 2:57 left, with Xavier’s Tyler Netolicky maneuvered for an inside bucket to put his team back ahead on the ensuing possession. The 6-foot-9 Netolicky finished with 15 points and 11 rebounds.
That’s the way things stayed until the dying moments. Linn-Mar got a defensive stop with 20 seconds to go, then Xavier’s Zander Murray was whistled for a reach-in foul on Havlik out front, well past the 3-point arc.
“The teams competed hard,” Xavier Coach Mike Freeman said when asked about the foul. “I just didn’t like it to end on that play.”
Linn-Mar has won its first three games, all by four points or less. The resume also includes wins at Bettendorf and Waukee.
Pretty impressive.
“They were all on the road,” Kern said. “One of them was two hours away ... It says a lot. These are tough games.”
“They are finding ways to win,” Robertson said. “Last year, we would not have done that. We would have folded, it wouldn’t have gone our way. I think they trust each other, they stay connected, they believe. Tonight was like that. Maybe it shouldn’t have gone our way, but it did.”
Havlik led everyone with 19 points, 15 in the first half. Kern had 15 points, 11 in the second half.
Though it didn’t win, this was an impressive showing from a Xavier team that lost two first-team all-state players from a team that was a state tournament runner-up in Class 3A: one to graduation, the other to transfer, as well as most everyone from its regular playing rotation. It’s an essentially brand new team for the Saints, but potentially a very good one.
Kaleb Wilgenbusch led Xavier with 16 points, with Netolicky adding 15 and D’Amico 12.
“I’m super proud,” Freeman said. “That was a fun game for everyone: the fans, players, coaches. Obviously I’m disappointed where we ended up tonight. But our team is developing, we’re getting better. We’re really young.”
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AT CEDAR RAPIDS XAVIER
LINN-MAR (62): Matthew Darbouze 3-8 3-7 9, Davis Kern 6-11 3-4 15, Mason Matson 4-8 3-4 11, Payson Nietert 0-4 0-0 0, Owen Havlik 7-13 2-3 19, Jake Wallrichs 3-5 2-2 8, Andrew Davenport 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 23-50 13-20 62.
CEDAR RAPIDS XAVIER (59): A.J. Evans 2-4 0-0 4, Tyler Netolicky 7-14 1-4 15, Dominic D’Amico 3-7 3-3 12, Kaleb Wilgenbusch 7-13 2-2 16, Zander Murray 2-4 0-0 4, Preston Lang 1-3 0-0 3, Lorenzo Pino 1-2 0-0 2, Aiden Miller 0-1 0-0 0, Jack Downey 1-1 0-0 3. Totals 24-49 6-9 59.
Halftime - Xavier 29, Linn-Mar 28. 3-point goals - Linn-Mar 3-15 (Darbouze 0-1, Kern 0-1, Matson 0-1, Nietert 0-4, Havlik 3-6, Wallrichs 0-1, Davenport 0-1), Xavier 5-12 (D’Amico 3-3, Wilgenbusch 0-4, Murray 0-2, Lang 1-2, Downey 1-1). Rebounds - Linn-Mar 25 (Wallrichs 6), Xavier 29 (Netolicky 11). Total fouls - Linn-Mar 10, Xavier 19. Fouled out - Evans, Netolicky. Turnovers - Linn-Mar 8, Xavier 14.
Comments: (319)-398-8258, jeff.johnson@thegazette.com
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