The sub-state tournament began with the Bluejay boys playing host to the Minneapolis Lions on Tuesday, Feb. 28, in first round action. The Jays earned the number one seed and the Lions were the number eight seed in the tournament. Sabetha catapulted out to a double-digit lead after the first quarter and eclipsed Minneapolis by more than 20 points at the half. The Bluejays cruised to victory on their last home court appearance of the season winning 65-35.

Sabetha opened on a 9-0 run to start the game with junior Christian McAfee using his strength and finesse to be an imposing force in the lane. McAfee led his team in scoring in the opening quarter with 7 points. Senior Matthew Garber came out with laser focus from deep territory to drain a pair of triples for 6 points. Sabetha exploited Minneapolis’s zone defense with their size and speed and led 20-10 at the end of the first.

Garber poured in four treys in the second quarter, which inked him 18 points in the first half. Senior Davis Rokey had 8 points in the period on some power layups and some transition scoring he facilitated with his steals. Junior Marcus Bauman had a bucket, as did senior Preston Michael, and the Jays held a commanding lead at the intermission, 46-21.

“Offensively, we played as well as we could the first half,” said Head Coach Scott Burger. “We shot the ball well, shared it with our teammates and played hard on the defensive end. We weren’t as sharp in the second half but played hard.”

Sabetha’s shooting hands went cold to start the second half, and the Lions managed some baskets in the interior to make the third quarter a close-scoring affair. Rokey scored 5 points, Michael dropped a three-pointer and McAfee added 2 points. Sabetha led 56-30 headed in to the final quarter.

Sabetha outscored the Lions 9-5 in the fourth period, with McAfee adding 4 points to his personal tally. While, junior Will Ulrich buried a triple and Rokey had 2 points in the effort. Although it was a tale of two halves, the damage was done in the first two quarters and the Bluejays ran away with the win, 65-35.

With the win, the Jays advanced to the semi-final round of Sub-State and met the Nemaha Central Thunder on Friday, March 3, for a chance to play for a championship and earn a berth to the State tournament.