Williams’ son, Isaiah-Michael Williams, led all scorers with 22 points.
Credit: Marcus Hartman
Credit: Marcus Hartman
That’s usually how it goes when the fifth-seeded Beavers take the floor. The 6-foot-3 senior led the GWOC with a 22.2 point scoring average during the regular season, but Ellerbe was the only other Beaver to average more than nine a night.
Ellerbe, 6-5 senior, had 15 against the Panthers while Owen Roether added 13, five more than his season average.
“It was all a matter of timing for him,” the coach of the Beavers (9-14) said. “I told (Roether) when we got here, this is not a shooter’s gym, so let’s make sure we get a bunch of shots up so you can adjust your eyes to the backdrop and everything like that. That’s what he did. He made big shots.”
Springboro led 12-4 early, but the Beavers ended the first quarter on a 9-0 run to take a one-point lead on a 3-pointer by Eli Walker.
The teams traded the lead on the next five possessions, concluding with a 3-pointer by Matt Meek that gave the Panthers a 20-18 lead.
After the teams traded treys at each end, Williams tied the game with a pair of free throws then put the Beavers on top with a basket from point-blank range with under a minute to go.
Ellerbe followed that with two more for Beavercreek on a eurostep drive through the lane before Yuvi Bimwal beat the buzzer for a Springboro layup to end Beavercreek’s 7-0 run and make the halftime score 27-25 BHS.
Springboro tied it early in the third, and the game remained even until the fourth quarter when Beavercreek scored the first seven points of the final stanza to stretch a three-point lead to 10.
Credit: Marcus Hartman
Credit: Marcus Hartman
The Panthers pressed from there but never recovered, and Williams’ late breakaway dunk punctuated the decision.
It also secured a spot in the district final against No. 2 seed Cincinnati Princeton at 11 a.m., Saturday, back at Butler.
Bimwall led Springboro with 14 points while Meek added 12, and the Panthers finished the season 14-9.
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