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Garrett Davault helps lift Norwood to first state title in school history with win over Bernie in Class 2 boys basketball final

Putnam County holds off late charge by Bishop LeBlond to take third.
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By Cody Thorn I Photos by Cheap Seats Photography 

SPRINGFIELD — Given how big of a role Garrett Davault played in getting Norwood into the Class 2 championship game, it was fitting the ball ended in his hands when the game mattered.

The 6-foot-3 senior scored the go-ahead basket and then grabbed the game-ending rebound to lift the Pirates to a 64-63 win over Bernie in the title game on Saturday night at JQH Arena.

“You know he's made big plays for us all year and we turned toward him a lot,” Norwood coach Shane Cardwell said. “He's a nice player. He's a winner and he finds a way to win.”

Davault finished with a game-high 24 points and his final basket was a big one, changing the lead for the fourth and final time with 22 seconds left.

Freshman Peyton McDaris got a steal and Davault picked it up near midcourt and cruised his way to the basket for the layup, accounting for the final score.

Norwood was down by one, following two free throws from McDaris with 36 seconds left, when the key turnover happened.

“I was actually yelling, ‘foul, foul’ because that kid just missed a free throw,” Davault said. “But then our freshman came up with a big play like he had all year, and he got the ball. Once he got it to me, first thing I thought was dunk and then I’m like no, I better just put just put this one in.”

Bernie (29-2) had the ball with a chance to win it but missed a jumper with 3 seconds left from about 12 feet away, which went into the hands of Davault.

The buzzer sounded and, he dashed down the court with the ball in tow and the Pirates celebrated the school’s first-ever state championship in any boys sport.

“I mean, it is great for the community, for the players, the fans, everyone,” Norwood senior Jacob Sinning said. “We haven't had a lot of success in recent years and just come to this. It's crazy. And I just hope they keep continuing it.”

Norwood had nine seniors on the roster and they saw the program go from 10-15 their freshmen year to 18-11 as sophomore and a playoff berth and first trip to state last year, taking third with a 24-6 record.

“I like this gold medal better than bronze,” Davault said.

Davault tallied 63 points in the two games at state, getting 39 in a close 59-55 win over Bishop LeBlond in the semifinals the night before. He came up with a big play late in the third quarter that helped break a 40-40 tie in the closing seconds. He grabbed an offensive rebound and scored, while drawing a foul. He made the free throw with 18 seconds left. That paved the way for Norwood to take a 45-42 lead into the fourth.

“He's really good and every time he was touching the ball we were either fouling him or he was scoring or he was making a great pass to someone for a layup,” Bernie coach Jason Long of Davualt, who had nine rebounds, eight assists and three steals.

The only time the Pirates (31-1) held a lead at the end of the quarter was the third and fourth. The Pirates, winners of 21 in a row, went 12-for-14 from the free-throw line in the second half and was 17-for-19 for the game.

Bernie had a 20-game winning streak snapped with the loss and kept the Mules from winning the school’s first state championship. Previous title berths in 1963, 1989, 2010 and 2011 all ended in second-place finishes as well. This supplanted a two-point loss to Sturgeon in the 2010 finals as the closest call.

“That game could’ve went either way,” Chadwell said. “The Bernie Mules are a great, great basketball team. They can very easily be sitting in this spot and us in theirs. Credit them had a great year as well, but again, what a year.”

Third-place game: Putnam County 57, Bishop LeBlond 55

For the second straight day, Bishop LeBlond fell behind by 10 points in the fourth quarter and responded with another rally.

This one, like the one on Friday, came up a little short as the Midgets prevailed in the third-place game held Saturday afternoon at Hammons Student Center.

This is the first state trophy for the Midgets, which compete in the Grand River Conference. 

Putnam County (25-3) took a 51-41 lead over the Golden Eagles following a 3-pointer by Zachary Heidenwirth with 3 minutes, 27 seconds to go in the contest.

The St. Joseph parochial school then rallied and got within a basket with a minute to go. Junior guard Jake Korell and senior guard Chris Guldan hit free throws to cut the deficit down to six. Senior guard Hayden Cross hit a 3-pointer – only his eighth of the year – to make it 53-51 with 1:02 to play.

The No. 4-ranked Midgets turned to Heidenwirth to put the game away as the senior guard scored the final four points – sandwiched between a jumper by Marcos Dominquez with 20 seconds left – in a 30-second span. His two free throws with 17 seconds left made it a 57-53 sealed win.

He finished with 19 points, one of three Midgets in double figures. Landon Wood had 11 and Lance Fowler tallied 10.

LeBlond (20-12) scored a bucket at the buzzer to account for the final score. The Eagles outscored the Midgets in three of the four quarters, the exception was the 15-7 third quarter.

Korell’s 15 points paced the Golden Eagles. Guldan had 12, followed by 11 from Cross, who hit two 3s.

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