Gwinn, Michigan – February 27th, 2019 – Playoff action begins from the ModelTown with the Ishpeming Hematites boys and the Gwinn ModelTowners. The opening tip went to the Ishpeming Hematites, but they couldn’t make anything happen on their first drive.
Kaleb Anderson picked up a foul early in the first, giving the Ishpeming Hematites a 1-0 lead over the ModelTowners. Despite their early lead, the Hematites found themselves trailing the ModelTowners as the quarter wore on. It was 7-4 midway through the first, and Gwinn was having a lot of success finding the bottom of the net. At the end of the first quarter, the ModelTowners had a narrow three-point lead to start the second quarter.
First Quarter Score
Ishpeming Hematites: 6
Gwinn ModelTowners: 9
The ModelTowners kept up the pressure and extended their lead out to 11-6 just over a minute into the second. Gwinn’s lead was locked in at five points for much of the quarter, but the Ishpeming Hematites never let them out of their sights. Gwinn took an early timeout when Ishpeming started to fight back, but the break seemed to give the ModelTowners the break they needed. Soon, the score was 21-14, and it looked more and more like the entire game would come down to the final half of play.
Halftime Score
Ishpeming Hematites: 16
Gwinn ModelTowners: 21
It was a close game for the first half, and the Ishpeming Hematites looked resolved as they exited the locker room for the second half. The Hematites fought back and took a 22-21 lead in the game, their first lead since early in the first quarter. Just seconds later, the ModelTowners re-took the lead, but only by a single point. Gwinn regained their composure and started to find the net again as the quarter fell under 5:00. Points kept falling for the ModelTowners, and soon they had a 29-22 lead. By the end of the third quarter, Gwinn clung to their two-basket lead, but it was anyone’s game going into the fourth.
Third Quarter Score
Ishpeming Hematites: 28
Gwinn ModelTowners: 34
Staying with Gwinn for much of the early game, the Ishpeming Hematites began to fall behind as the last minutes came off the clock. The ModelTowners maintained a 10-point lead as the fourth quarter passed the five minutes to play mark, and the Hematites were becoming increasingly desperate. Ishpeming was forced to use one of their timeouts a bit earlier than they would have liked, but that didn’t seem to phase the Gwinn players. The ModelTowners had a 53-44 lead with just minutes left in the game, and the stands came alive for both sides of the court. With 1:30 left in the game, Ishpeming used their last timeout to prevent a turnover, so they would have to play nearly perfect basketball in the final :90 seconds to tie or win the game. The finals seconds of the game were filled with nail-biting moments, and the Hematites stayed within two scores of the ModelTowners. With :17 left in the game, it was 57-55 for Gwinn, but Ishpeming fouled, giving the ModelTowners two free shots. Those free throws sealed the game for Gwinn, and the Hematites would have to take a tough loss.
Final Game Score
Ishpeming Hematites: 55
Gwinn ModelTowners: 59