Goodhue closes out stretch, L-P eliminated from postseason
Published 1:17 pm Saturday, March 11, 2023
Lyle-Pacelli's Jake Truckenmiller brings the ball up-court against Goodue during the Section 1A semifinals Saturday in Rochester. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Lyle-Pacelli's Buay Koak tries to secure the ball while being pressured by Goodhue's Justin Buck, left, and Will Opsahl in the first half during the Section 1A semifinals Saturday in Rochester. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Lyle-Pacelli's Landon Meyer tries to work out of trouble in the first half against Goodhue during the Section 1A semifinals Saturday in Rochester. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Lyle-Pacelli's Mac Nelson with the shot in the first half against Goodhue during the Section 1A semifinals Saturday in Rochester. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Lyle-Pacelli's Trey Anderson weaves through traffic during the first half against Goodhue during the Section 1A semifinals Saturday in Rochester. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
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ROCHESTER — The No. 4 seeded Lyle-Pacelli boys basketball team did everything it could to pull off an upset over top-seeded Goodhue (26-3 overall, but the Athletics ran out of steam in the late minutes of a 51-54 loss in the Section 1A semifinals in Mayo Civic Auditorium Saturday.
After hitting 11 three-pointers in the game’s first 20 minutes to build up a nine-point lead, L-P’s offense went south in clutch time. The Athletics (23-6 overall) scored just five points in an 11-minute stretch until Buay Koak hit a three to bring L-P within 54-51 with three seconds left.
“We gave them everything we had. We just got a little cold at the end,” L-P head coach Carl Truckenmiller said. “We had some looks at the rim that didn’t go in. We just didn’t finish the deal. We executed our game plan the way we wanted and the kids played awesome.”
Goodhue missed a free throw on the front end of a one-and-one and Koak was fouled before he could shoot a game-tying half courter with .6 seconds left. Koak missed the first free throw of a one-and-one and the game ended.
Koak finished with 23 points, 10 rebounds and three blocked shots in his final game for L-P.
“They got most of the 50-50 balls that we should’ve got. They outhustled us and they made us turn the ball over,” Koak said. “We’ve seen that defense before and we knew it was coming, but it was just a matter of executing. With their length and athleticism, they cause turnovers.”
Goodhue took its first lead of the second half when Adam Poncelet scored in the paint with 3:30 left in the game and Justin Buck made a free throw to make it 50-48 with 1:40 left in the game.
Poncelet gave Goodhue a 52-48 lead when he drove and scored with 1:10 left.
LP led by as many as nine after Jake Truckenmiller hit a three to make it 43-34 with 11:20 left in the game, but when Goodhue switched to a man-to-man defense, the momentum shifted.
The Athletics hustled their way to a 27-20 lead at halftime as they won the battle on the boards and the fight to loose balls early on.
Mac Nelson hit a three off an offensive rebound and assist from Trey Anderson to put L-P up 13-6 with 11:30 left in the half. Jake Truckenmiller added a three to put L-P up 16-11 with 7:50 left and he ended the first half with a baseline three to beat the buzzer.
L-P had a strong senior group that made the deepest run in a tournament since Lyle and Pacelli have been a co-op.
“It’s really hard to say goodbye. I’ve played with those guys since sixth grade and we’ve become like a family,” Koak said. “Even though we’re two schools, we operate as one.”
For Carl Truckenmiller, it will be tough to say goodbye to coaching his son Jake Truckenmiller, who had 14 points.
“I’ve coached this group since they were in third grade,” Carl Truckenmiller said. “The starting five had a great game and they couldn’t have played any better.”
Goodhue 20 34 – 54
Lyle-Pacelli 27 24 – 51
L-P scoring: Buay Koak, 23; Jake Truckenmiller, 14; Mac Nelson, 6; Hunter Bauer, 3; Landon Meyer, 3; Trey Anderson, 2
