SEMISTATE: Brebeuf hangs on to edge Evansville Bosse, 55-53, on strength of Phillips' 30 points, 19 boards

By Jeff Rabjohns

Indystar.com

JEFFERSONVILLE – Kendall Kreinhagen made her grandfather proud once again. This time, she had to beat his former team

Kreinhagen coached the sixth-ranked Brebeuf Jesuit girls basketball team to a 55-53 victory over No. 9 Evansville Bosse in a Class 3A semistate at Jeffersonville on Saturday afternoon.

It set up the second state title game appearance in four years for Brebeuf and Kreinhagen, whose grandfather Jerry Canterbury won 198 games as Bosse’s coach before retiring in 1990.

“It’s one of those bittersweet things being that I grew up in that gym at Bosse High School with my grandfather. I know in his heart he wanted me to win, but he wasn’t going to be that sad if Bosse won,” said Kreinhagen, whose grandfather was among a strong contingent of family at the game.

“The thing is, this is for these kids and I’m so happy for them.”

Brebeuf, which won the 2004 Class 3A title, takes a 22-6 record into Saturday’s 6 p.m. championship game against No. 8 Wawasee (22-3) in Conseco Fieldhouse. The Warriors, who upset No. 1 South Bend St. Joseph’s 58-46 in the Elkhart Semistate, lost to Brebeuf 58-53 on Dec. 23.

The Braves — who outrebounded the Bulldogs 42-27 — needed a furious rally in the final 1 minute, 40 seconds against Bosse (22-4) after a 10-point, second-half lead slipped away.

Brebeuf trailed 53-48 when Whitney Gray hit the last of four consecutive Bosse 3-pointers. The Braves made two crucial steals in the final stretch, and didn’t allow the Bulldogs to score again.

Junior Callie Curry’s 3-pointer with 1:25 to play pulled the Braves within 53-51. Curry hit a layup with 48 seconds left to tie the score, and Brebeuf junior Tiffany Byrd and sophomore Lauren Meadows followed with steals.

Byrd made 1-of-2 free throws with 34.5 seconds left to put Brebeuf up 54-53, but senior Ivie Obeime missed the front end of a 1-and-1 with 20 seconds to go. Bosse’s Kayla Kimbrew missed a jumper with seven seconds left. Brebeuf senior Ta’Shia Phillips rebounded and made the first of two free throws with 4.8 seconds to play. After Phillips’ miss, Bosse managed only a long 3-pointer that sailed over the rim at the buzzer.

“It’s because we wanted it,” Curry said of the defensive stands down the stretch. “We think this is our year. We’ve been playing hard, working hard, and we’re not going to give up until we get to the end.”

The frenetic finish overshadowed another spectacular performance from Phillips, Brebeuf’s 6-6 post player who had game highs of 30 points and 19 rebounds. That came after Phillips, who Saturday was officially chosen to the McDonald’s All-American Game, had a triple-double last weekend in a regional semifinal.

“Right now, it’s just about winning,” said Phillips, who hit 12-of-24 shots and is still weighing collegiate options. “If that means I’ve got to step up, hey, I’ll do that for these girls, and they’re doing the same thing for me.”

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