The Guardian Angels Central Catholic Boys knocked off Norfolk Catholic 62-38 at home on Saturday in the play-in game of the Mid-State Conference Tournament before falling 66-41 to O'Neill in the Quarterfinals at Northeast Community College Tuesday night.
The Bluejays led the Knights 14-12 after one. GACC won the second quarter 14-10 to take a 28-22 lead into the locker room.
The Bluejays exploded in the third quarter, outscoring Norfolk Catholic 15-4 to go up 43-26 at the end of three.
GACC put up 19 points in the fourth quarter compared to 12 for the Knights.
The Eagles got out to a 17-13 lead on the Bluejays at the end of one before tripling up GACC 18-6 in the third quarter to go up 35-19 at the break.
O'Neill outscored the Bluejays 14-8 in the third quarter to lead 49-27 after three.
The Eagles won the fourth quarter 17-14.
I thought GACC played a great game against Norfolk Catholic, but really struggled to score against O'Neill.
The Bluejays (7-10) take on Boone Central/Newman Grove (10-7) in a consolation game Friday night at 6:15 at Norfolk Catholic.
The Cardinals lost 61-56 in overtime to Pierce Tuesday night.
The two teams met in Newman Grove on January 14th with BC/NG winning 68-50.
GACC has looked like a state championship team at times this year, and at other times they haven't.
The biggest inconsistency for the Bluejays has been their offense, in my opinion, although the defense has struggled at times as well.
GACC is a tough team to figure out, but when the Bluejays are on they are on. However, when they are off they are off.
GACC has some very tough and interesting games before the postseason begins so it will be interesting to see if the Bluejays can get on a roll of some sort and gain some momentum heading into the postseason.
A win over the Cardinals would be huge for GACC.
And the Bluejays can definitely win if they play the way they did against Norfolk Catholic.
GACC has had a great stretch of basketball this year so there's no reason to think the Bluejays can't have another good stretch.
So perhaps GACC can get another great stretch of basketball started with a win over BC/NG Friday night.
To win, the Bluejays have to be confident in their abilities shooting the ball.
GACC's players have to look to shoot the ball when they are open, and if something isn't there, work the ball inside for an easy basket.
The Bluejays have to be in the triple threat position all at times, which includes shooting, passing, and dribbling.
GACC has to look to attack the basket and do their best to play above the rim.
The Bluejays also have to play with the confidence and swagger that I'm sure other GACC teams, boys or girls, have played with in the past.
The Guardian Angels Central Catholic Girls won 42-34 over Boone Central/Newman Grove in the first round of the Mid-State Conference Tournament at Northeast Community College Monday night.
The Cardinals held an 8-5 lead at the end of one. The Bluejays erupted in the second quarter, outscoring BC/NG 18-7 to take a 23-15 lead into the locker room.
The Cardinals bounced back by winning the third quarter 12-9 to make it a 32-27 game at the end of three.
GACC held off BC/NG in the fourth quarter, putting up 10 points and holding the Cardinals to 7.
This wasn't one of the Bluejays' best performances by any stretch of the imagination, but it was a win, and at this time of year, you'll take it.
GACC (15-1) battles Wayne (15-5) in the Semifinals Thursday night at 6:15 p.m. at Northeast Community College.
The Blue Devils downed O'Neill 52-38 in the Quarterfinals at Northeast Monday night.
The Bluejays defeated Wayne 69-55 in overtime at home on December 19th, but that was Maddie Knobbe's first game back from resting her knee I believe.
I'm not 100% sure if GACC is still without Hannah Hunke or not, but regardless this should be another great battle.
The Bluejays have to come out and smack the Blue Devils in the mouth.
GACC has to come out aggressive, and be ready to take it to Wayne for four quarters.
The Bluejays have to play with the confidence and swagger that I'm sure both their boys and girls sports teams have been known for over the years.
GACC has to look to play their best game of the season because knocking off the Blue Devils a second time doesn't figure to be easy.
I don't know if I would say the Bluejays a great team, but they are very good.
Maybe not as strong as last year, but still awfully darn tough.
The bottomline though is GACC has found ways to win games this year, and I look for the Bluejays to find a way to win again Thursday night.
The winner gets either Pierce or Crofton in the championship game on Saturday, and I'm sure GACC would love another shot at the Warriors.
The Bluejays have two very difficult games after this conference tournament gets done so GACC's next four games are going to really tell us how good the Bluejays are I would say.
GACC has this game with Wayne, another game against either Pierce or Crofton on Saturday, and games with Pender and Pierce to end the regular season so it's time for the Bluejays to crank up the intensity and play at the top of their game.
A win is a win, but GACC has to play better than they did against BC/NG from here on out.
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