Jackson boys boys basketball team weathers 3-point barrage in district semifinal

The Jackson Indians built a 25-point lead in the third quarter, then withstood a barrage of 3-pointers to advance to the championship game of the Class 5 District 1 tournament with a 66-53 victory Tuesday over Seckman at Oakville High School.

Jackson the top seed, improved to 17-10 and will face second-seeded Oakville (11-10) in Friday's 7 p.m. title game.

The Indians came out strong, outscoring Seckman 19-5 in the first quarter and leading 35-15 at halftime.

Six-foot-seven sophomore Blake Reynolds scored 13 of his team-high 19 points in the first half. Reynolds also finished with eight rebounds.

"His presence inside was just real big for us," Jackson assistant coach Cory Barker said.

The Indians extended their 20-point halftime lead to 25 points in the third quarter, but Seckman responded with a long-distance shooting display. The Jaguars connected on six 3-pointers in scoring 25 points in the third quarter to close the gap to 48-40 by the start of the fourth quarter.

"They were throwing it in from everywhere," said Barker about the Jaguars, who scored 11 of their 20 field goals for the game from behind the arc.

Seckman knocked down three more 3-pointers in the fourth quarter, closing the gap to 55-50 about midway through the period.

Jackson outscored the Jaguars 11-3 over the remainder of the game to secure the win.

"We withstood their barrage of 3s," Barker said. "We were just able to play through it, which showed signs of maturity by our team."

Luke Stevens added 14 points for the Indians, while Karson King added 10 points.

Matt Harvey accounted for six of the Jaguars' 3-pointers and finished with 22 points. Luke Boyster added four 3-pointers and 14 points.

"Overall we're pleased with the win and looking forward to Friday night," Barker said.

Seckman 5 10 25 13 -- 53

Jackson 19 16 13 18 -- 66

SECKMAN (53) -- Ricky Harris 3, Colby Holloway 5, Matt Harvey 22, Luke Boyster 14, Ryan Luh 2, Jacob Stuckmeyer 2, Ben Ingenthron 2, Paul Stephens 3. FG 20. FT 2-5, F 14. (3-pointers: Harris, Harvey 6, Boyster 4. Fouled out: none)

JACKSON (66) -- Josh Daume 7, Braxton McDowell 6, Calvin Lysell 2, Braden Wendel 2, Skyler Steele 2, Karson King 10, Blake Reynolds 19, Brandon Lueders 4, Luke Stevens 14. FG 24, FT 13-22, F 11. (3-pointers: Daume, McDowell, 2, Stevens 2. Foule out none)