RAPID CITY, S.D. — Second-seeded West Central wasted little time asserting control Friday night.
Behind a dominant start and a steady parade to the free-throw line, unbeaten West Central pulled away for a 56-43 victory over No. 3 Clark/Willow Lake in the Class A boys basketball state semifinals at Summit Arena.
West Central (24-0) advances to Saturday night’s championship game, while Clark/Willow Lake will play for third place as they fall to 21-3.
The tone was set early. West Central held Clark/Willow Lake to just one field goal in the opening quarter and raced to a 10-2 lead. The Cyclones’ defensive pressure forced tough shots throughout the first half, as Clark/Willow Lake shot just 34 percent from the field and 3 of 17 from 3-point range for the game.
West Central extended its lead to 21-14 at halftime and then created separation in the third quarter. A 15-7 run in the period pushed the margin to 36-21, highlighted by inside scoring from Will Kuhl and timely perimeter play from Boche Knight.
Kuhl led West Central with 16 points and nine rebounds, anchoring the paint on both ends. Connor Mebius added a game-high 22 points, doing most of his damage at the free-throw line where he went a perfect 14-for-14. West Central finished 21 of 28 from the stripe.
Clark/Willow Lake never led and struggled to find consistent offense until the fourth quarter, when it scored 22 points and shot nearly 70 percent. By then, the deficit was too large to overcome.
Sullivan Felberg paced Clark/Willow Lake with 13 points and eight rebounds, while Bo Begeman added eight points and five boards. Chris Bevers contributed seven points but was limited to 3-of-12 shooting.
West Central outrebounded Clark/Willow Lake 37-28 and capitalized on turnovers for a 10-5 edge in points off miscues.
Clark/Willow Lake closed the gap to 10 points late, but West Central sealed the game at the line in the final two minutes, with Mebius knocking down a series of free throws to keep the Wildcats comfortably in front.
With the win, West Central remains unbeaten and will look to cap its perfect season with a state championship on Saturday night vs. Sioux Falls Christian.