Xavier advances to substate final without leading scorer

CEDAR RAPIDS — It's hard to fire on all cylinders when you're missing one.

With senior Mitch Burger out (coach's decision), the Saints found themselves without their top scorer. Xavier kept its composure, however, and rolled to a 56-43 Class 3A district final win over Clear Creek-Amana on Thursday at Cedar Rapids Prairie.

'We just settled in and kept our composure,' said Xavier head coach Ryan Luehrsmann. 'Matt Mims was critical from the point guard spot, he never panicked once.'

Mims, a sophomore, had 15 points for Xavier and was 4-of-6 from 3-point range. He drilled a 3-pointer with 2:39 to play in the game, and quickly followed that up with a lay-up off a Nolan Butkowski steal to give the Saints their biggest lead, 48-32.

'We just looked at each other and said, 'We want to have practice tomorrow, so we have to get going,'' said Mims.

Passing problems plagued the Saints early. A few low passes kept Xavier from converting on possessions, while sluggish defense allowed Clear Creek-Amana to hang around. The Saints' bright spot was junior Max Techau, who had six first-quarter points for the Saints.

'We had a lot of trouble with their zone at first,' said Techau, who finished with 14 points. 'We calmed down, figured out where the gaps were, and we were successful.'

The Saints' defense stood tall in the second quarter, keeping Clear Creek-Amana off the board until the 2:09 mark.

'They made it tough though, because they had such long possessions,' said Luehrsmann. 'They were very patient. It's hard to guard for 35-40 seconds, but our guys were very disciplined and stayed solid.'

The Clippers, however, would not go down without a fight. Clear Creek-Amama scored seven of the first 10 points in the second half. Kahler Green was instrumental early in the half for the Clippers, nailing a 3-pointer to cut the Saints' lead to 25-23.

That was as close as the Clippers would get, as Xavier slowly pulled away to advance to the substate final on Monday.

'The key was we stayed composed and stayed aggressive,' said Luehrsmann. 'We didn't get passive.'