BEMIDJI – When Bemidji’s Isaac Severts lined up nearly 84 feet from inbound passer Dan Clusiau with four seconds left, he knew the ball was coming to him.
The Lumberjacks (11-6) trailed by one point with 4.4 seconds left. Clusiau’s three-quarter-court heave landed in Severts’ gut before he turned, made a break for the rim and laid in the game-winning bucket.
“I thought to myself, ‘I’ve got to get this off as quick as I can,’” Severts said. “Luckily, it was there for me, and I got it off.”
“We went with a play that sent the ball all the way down to him early so he could have those four seconds,” BHS head coach Steve Thompson said. “That’s just Isaac Severts making a play.”
The last-second layup capped off a 12-2 Bemidji run, culminating in a 58-57 win over West Fargo (N.D.). The Lumberjacks’ 11th win became official once Keyton McGregor’s desperation lob from half court fell short as time expired.
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“We know we have to lock in because we know they’re going to be a quality opponent,” Severts said. “In the end, we needed to lock in, and we made it a thriller.”
Bemidji trailed 55-46 with less than two minutes left before Severts hit a 3-pointer to spark the run. The Lumberjacks then forced a five-second inbound violation before Jaxon Boschee drilled another triple. Ethan Biehn made it a one-possession game with 1:21 left following a second consecutive West Fargo inbound-pass turnover.
“We switched it up defensively and just tried to put a little pressure on them,” Thompson said. “We were very aggressive out of it, and made plays out of it. The leadership we have on the court, they believed they were going to do it, and belief is a huge thing.”
Trailing 55-54, Biehn drew a foul. After he made both ends of the one-and-one, West Fargo came up empty on its ensuing possession. Clusiau earned a hard-fought rebound before drawing another foul.
The Bemidji senior had two chances to make the front end of his one-and-one attempt due to a West Fargo lane violation. After missing both, the Packers drew up a play to get the ball into the hands of Tony Leal, their most effective scorer.
Leal made a cut to the rim and scored relatively easily with 4.4 seconds left, setting up the Lumberjacks’ final offensive possession.
“Thompson had a few plays for us,” Severts said. “If they were in a man (defense), we were going to have (Ethan) Biehn come up. If they were in a zone, which they were, I was going to come up the middle. Luckily, I was able to finish.”
On another night, McGregor’s second half would be more memorable. He scored the opening seven points of the second half to give the Packers a 32-22 lead. After Clusiau got a contested layup to fall, McGregor sank a 3-pointer.
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McGregor’s hot start to the second half contrasted starkly with West Fargo’s opening frame. Instead of the guards filling up the scoresheet, the Packers muscled their way to an early lead in the post. Junior forward Leal’s 10 first-half points led all scorers through 18 minutes. He finished with a game-high 20.
Bemidji’s stars carried the load offensively early on. Trailing 15-9, Severts drove to the rack for two-handed dunks on back-to-back offensive possessions. Biehn tied the game with a step-back 2-pointer to cap off a 6-0 run.
Scoring was hard to come by in the final six minutes of the opening frame. West Fargo took a 25-22 lead into the locker room behind 10 points from Leal. Biehn (9) and Severts (8) combined for 17 in the first half.
“We want the ball to run through their hands all the time and as much as we can,” Thompson said. “Those guys made shots for us throughout the game, and once again at the end of the game.”
McGregor’s sharpshooting only took the Packers so far. Bemidji clawed its way back into the game on back-to-back 3-pointers from Matt Matheney off the bench. His triples bookended a 10-0 run, cutting the deficit to 38-37 with under 10 minutes left.
“Matheney coming in and draining those was something we really needed,” Severts said. “Matt knows when he’s open, he can stroke it, and he did that.”
West Fargo’s Max Shell hit a pair of big 3-pointers and an uncontested layup late in the second half. It preceded a pair of free throws from Leal, giving the Packers a nine-point lead with two minutes left. It subsequently set up the Lumberjacks’ late-game heroics.
Thursday’s win was the fifth straight for Bemidji. Considering its next three games against Hermantown (13-4), Perham (15-1) and Alexandria (11-2), garnering any momentum is critical.
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“We have a lot of big games coming against teams like Alex and Perham,” Severts said. “We’re going to take this and hopefully go on a little streak here.”
Bemidji 58, West Fargo (N.D.) 57
WF 25 32 – 57
BHS 22 36 – 58
WEST FARGO – Leal 20, McGregor 14, Shell 10, Parries 7, Pfau 4, Loria 2.
BEMIDJI – Biehn 16, Severts 16, Lish 8, Clusiau 7, Matheney 6, Boschee 3, Yeung 2.
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