Maranatha vs Southwest Minnesota Christian 1A State Championship

#  Maranatha (31-1) vs SW MN Christian ( 29-1)

This 1A Championship game brings a match up of two very balanced teams. Both teams are having great seasons and come in this game expecting to win. Each team has only one lose and only one gome bring home a Minnesota State Championship.  

Southwest Christian wins the tip-off, Leighton Sampson with first score of the game 2-0

Maranatha up 7-6 with 16:00 left in the second half

Maranatha up 13-12 with 12:00 left in the first half

Maranatha calls T.O. down 19-13 with 9:00 left in the first half

Southwest Christian holding the lead up 29-23 with 6:00 left in the first half

Maranatha go on a 7-1 run to tie the game up at 30 with 2:27 left in the first half

Maranatha up 37-34 at halftime

Southwest Christian starts the second half on a 5-2 run to tie the game up at 39 with 15:35 left

Maranatha up 48-44 with 13:00 left in the second half

Southwest Christian and Maranatha tied up at 55 with 10:00 left in the second half

Josh Goldschmidt takes the lead 58-55 with 9:00 left in the second half

Southwest Christian goes on a 7-0 run to go up 62-58 with 7:00 left in the second

Nate Pfeifle with a big 3, Southwest Christian up 71-64 with 4:00 left in the game

Maranatha with 4 straight misses from deep, down 75-64 with 2:00 left in the game

Southwest Christian gets the big time win 81-73 

Game Review
This game had 14 lead changes and was a all out battle to take home the Championship. Southwest Christian got a double digit lead with 2:16 left in the game.Southwest Christian out scored Marantha 26-18 in the last 10:00 of the second half. Maranatha fell behind at the wrong time allowing Southwest Christian to close out the game with their largest lead of the game. Southwest Christian won the turnover battle 5 to 11 and made 11/13 free throws in the last 10:00 of the game.

Southwest Minnesota Christian Southwest Christian played a compete game with smart plays and big time heart down the stretch. Southwest Christian controlled the pace of the game and got buckets on key possessions to close out the game strong. Leighton Sampson 22pts 3blk 0to and Dominic Nibbelink 29pts 7ast 0to led their team to the victory with their dominate performances. Eric Talsma 9pts and Nate Pfeifle 12pts with solid games to get this team win.   

Maranatha Maranatha did not have a bad game but something broke down with the team chemistry down the stretch. Isaiah Hanson 24pts 8reb was the only who had their A game ready for this game. Marantha need Garrison Gillard's 14pts play-making ability in the second half when Maranatha was having trouble scoring. Jeremiah Hanson 11pts and Grantham Gillard 8pts with solid games. Maranatha had chances to take control of the game but did not get the key plays down the stretch.