Willen puts up 40 in Bulldogs' victory

~ Free-throw shooting proved the difference in the game.

Notre Dame's Ryan Willen admitted on the first day of the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament that if there was any team he'd like to face this week, it was Charleston.

The 6 foot 8 center missed the first five games this season with a stress fracture in his ankle, and during that stretch the Bulldogs dropped a 30-point decision to the Bluejays.

Willen said he wanted a rematch to see if he could make a difference.

He got his rematch Friday evening in the tournament's semifinal round, and he quickly found out he could be a difference maker.

Notre Dame's Austin Greer, center, shot over Charleston defenders Friday evening during the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament.

Willen netted 40 points, including hitting two 3-pointers and 12-of-13 free throws, to help the No. 5 Bulldogs upset the No. 1 Bluejays 70-67 at the Show Me Center.

"We were all pretty excited," Willen said. "They beat us by 30 the first time without me and Austin [Greer]. We knew we could come back and play them and play them a lot closer than 30 points, and it was a battle the whole night. They were a very good team and we were able to come out on top."

Notre Dame advanced to the finals, where it will play Jackson at 7:30 p.m. today. The Indians won their semifinal game, beating Central 59-47.

The Bluejays, who have won the Christmas tournament 15 times, have been the top seed each year since 2003, but have not won the title since 2002.

Willen came out with a hot shooting hand in the first quarter, scoring 13 of his team's 20 points in the period. That included pouring in the first nine Notre Dame points.

He had two nice layups to start the game, including going back door to give his team a 4-2 advantage, and then later stepping out and knocking down a wide open 3-pointer to put the Bulldogs ahead 9-6 with 5 minutes, 40 seconds remaining in the first quarter.

From there, the Bulldogs went on an 11-6 run to end the first quarter with a 20-12 lead.

"Our guards did a really good job getting the ball down low, and Austin set a few really good screens at the start," Willen said. "I got some open layups and just got the whole game going. The guards penetrated, we set good screens, had good ball movement and got the ball down low, and me and Austin were able to finish tonight."

Notre Dame did struggle offensively in the second quarter. The Bluejays outscored the Bulldogs 12-6 with Willen netting only two points.

"We stopped running the offense," Willen said. "When we came out for the third quarter, we knew we had to swing the ball and screen and cut to the basket, get low and get good shots."

The Bulldogs led at the half 26-24.

"We were switching off when they would come and set the back pick," said Charleston 6-5 post-player Brian Parham, who was defending Willen most of the game. "It helped a man out to get to him and slow him down a little bit. ... He's a good player. He's pretty tough."

Willen came out in the third as hot as he was in the first quarter. And the Bulldogs' offensive received a boost when Parham had to sit because of his third foul with 4:34 remaining in the third.

Willen scored 15 points to help the Bulldogs outscore Charleston 21-12 in the third.

The senior extended his team's lead to 28-24 just 20 seconds in the quarter with a basket in the paint. He then scored a 3-pointer from the top of the key to give his team a 31-26 lead.

"He can get open really good," Bulldogs sophomore guard Nick Koeppel said about Willen. "He is tall, so he allows us when we're in trouble to throw it to him and save us from getting turnovers and stuff. He's definitely [added] an inside game because before we did not have big men, but now we can score inside a lot easier. It takes pressure off the guards."

With the third winding down, Willen missed a 3-pointer, but guard John Unterreiner grabbed the rebound and made a crisp pass to Mark Himmelberg, who scored a 3-pointer himself to put the Bulldogs up 47-38 entering the fourth.

From there, Notre Dame held on and came away with a three-point win, helped out by converting 15-of-21 free throws in the fourth quarter. Willen made 6-of-7 down the stretch.

"It's good to go back to the championship, but it means so much more to win," said Willen, who won the Christmas Tournament with the Bulldogs his sophomore year. "Second place in state was awesome, but it just wasn't winning. Win the Christmas Tournament and there's nothing like it."

Notre Dame 20 6 21 23 -- 70

Charleston 12 12 14 29 -- 67

Notre Dame (70) -- Nick Koeppel 5, Mark Himmelberg 8, John Unterreiner 7, Austin Greer 9, Ryan Willen 40, Logan Glueck 1. FG 21, FT 24-32, F 18 (3-pointers: Willen 2, Himmelberg 2. Fouled out: none)

Charleston (67) -- Antonio Riggens 6, Jerquawn Sherrell 9, Allen Hemphill 2, Deonte Jones 5, Donald Dixon 28, Brian Parham 18. FG 26, FT 11-16, F 20 (3-pointers: Sherrell 2, Dixon 1, Parham 1. Fouled out: Riggens)