Harlan returns to 3A finals

CNA photo by LARRY PETERSON Breakaway: ADM guard Troy Ticknor (24) passes to a teammate on a fast break against Harlan guard Michael Kaufman (15) during ThursdayÕs Class 3A semifinal game at Wells Fargo Arena. Harlan rallied from a 12-2 early deficit to defeat ADM 56-47. The Cyclones face Dubuque Wahlert in SaturdayÕs 6 p.m. championship game. All championship games tonight and Saturday are telecast on KCWI-23 (channel 9 on Mediacom cable).

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DES MOINES (AP) — It wasn’t a good day to be an undefeated No. 1 seed at the state tournament. Hours after Class 2A top seed Pella Christian fell, 3A powerhouse Forest City lost to Wahlert Dubuque 67-60 Thursday in the state semifinals. The Eagles will face traditional 3A power Harlan in Saturday’s championship game. The third-seeded Cyclones topped ADM Adel 56-47. Eric May had 24 points and Drew Davis added 21 points and 16 rebounds for fourth-seeded Wahlert (23-3), which outscored Forest City 12-5 down the stretch. Forest City (24-1) got within 56-55 on a Tyler Putz 3 with 3:54 left. Brett Putz, Tyler’s older brother, then missed a 3 that would have given Forest City the lead, and that’s as close as the Indians got. Wahlert pushed the lead to three with a layup, and May hit a crucial 3-pointer that put the Eagles up 61-55 with 2:11 left. The Indians threw the ball away on their next possession, and Wahlert extended its lead at the free throw line. May and Davis caught fire in the third quarter, combining for 14 points and helping put Wahlert up 50-46 heading into the fourth. Wahlert opened the game with a 12-2 run, capped by a 3 from Dan Leibfried, that forced Forest City to call a timeout. It didn’t do much good, as Wahlert pushed its lead to as much as 19-7. Forest City regrouped near the end of the first and reeled off a 20-6 run to take the lead 27-25. Wahlert led at halftime 31-29. Tyler Putz had 20 points and Brett Putz added 17 for the Indians. Haake nets 19 In the nightcap, Kyle Haake scored 19 to lead Harlan to its third title appearance in five years. The Cyclones (24-2) won states in 2004 and 2006. ADM Adel was trailing 46-42 when Troy Ticknor, who hit 70 3s this season, pulled up for a 3-pointer that did everything but go in. Harlan eventually grabbed the rebound and Doug Bissen hit a layup on the other end, pushing the Cyclones’ lead to six with less than two minutes left. Reserve Jeff Hastert scored 10 and Daniel Hoch — the 6-foot-7, 290-pounder who will play football at Missouri next fall — added 10 rebounds. Harlan trailed much of the third quarter before Michael Kaufmann followed a Haake 3 with a steal and layup to put the Cyclones ahead 37-34. Harlan pushed it to 45-37 midway through the second half on a layup by Haake. ADM quickly cut it to 45-42 with 2:44 left. The Tigers led by as much as 10 early in the first quarter, but their edge dwindled to 24-23 by halftime. That was in part because Harlan grabbed 11 offensive rebounds in the first half. Ticknor contained Tim DeSplinter, transfer from Johnston, had 24 points to lead ADM (24-2). Ticknor was held to six points, 14 below his season average. “I thought Tony Kenkel and Jeff Hastert did a great job on Ticknor,” Harlan coach Mitch Osborn said. “We did not want him to get his touches with the way he shoots from the arc.” ADM coach Aaron Mager said a key factor was Harlan winning the rebounding battle (35-30) and establishing a lead midway through the fourth quarter. That played into Osborn’s delay offense, and the Cyclones converted 7-of-8 free throws in the final 2:35 to seal the win. “They don’t turn the ball over and they make their free throws,” Mager said. “We talked all week about not letting them get a lead late, where they can dictate to you with that spread. They execute well. If we could have stayed ahead, it would have been a different situation.” Osborn looks at Wahlert as a formidible opponent as the Cyclones seek their third state title since 2004. “Wahlert beat Iowa City High,” Osborn noted. “They may be the best darn team in the whole tournament, regardless of class. We’ll have to play an A-plus game, try to hang around and hope to have a shot at the end.”