HUMBOLDT — David Taylor noted to anybody within earshot that Humboldt’s brutal Class 3A substate bracket extended beyond the top three seeds.
Monday’s opening round illustrated his point.
The third seed Cubs, with only three losses, hosted sixth seed Jayhawk-Linn, which entered Monday’s tilt with a 9-10 record.
And for the better part of three quarters, the Jayhawks gave Humboldt everything it wanted, and more.
The Cubs didn’t take their first lead until late in the third quarter, trailing by as many as nine earlier in the game.
Still, Humboldt’s defense fueled a late run for the Cubs to pull away late in a 57-44 victory.
The win sets up what should be a dandy Class 3A substate semifinal Thursday evening against the Wellsville Eagles. Wellsville is seeded second, and like Humboldt, sports an 18-3 record going into Thursday.
And like Humboldt, the Eagles had to sweat out a tough first-round game, holding off West Franklin, 53-48.
Humboldt’s final 13-point margin was not indicative of the game’s competitive nature.
Likewise, Taylor said Jayhawk-Linn was better than its 9-10 record.
“That’s a good team,” he said. “They move the ball well, and they play tough.”
A 13-0 run covering the last five minutes of the third quarter finally propelled Humboldt into the lead.
Trailing 34-27, Markiz Pulliam and Hunter Murrow scored on consecutive possessions for the Cubs before a Justin Meins steal led to Robbie Sellman’s 3-point play to tie the score with 1:55 left in the period.
Humboldt’s trapping defense then forced three consecutive Jayhawk turnovers — twice forcing Jayhawk-Linn to call timeout in the process.
Each turnover resulted in Cub baskets. Caleb D’Armond’s jumper gave Humboldt its first lead at 36-34 with 1:29 left in the third. Caleb Vanatta followed with a jumper from just inside the 3-point line, and Sellman’s jumper with 26 seconds remaining pushed the Cubs ahead by six.
“Once we started hitting our shots, the guys really started playing with more confidence,” Taylor said. “It’s not that we were playing poorly early. We just weren’t playing well.”
