In a game where tired legs were definitely going to come into play at some point, getting out to a quick start was going to be important in the championship game of the Joe Machens Great 8 Classic.
The Helias Crusaders played a great first half, racing out to a 25-10 lead lead, then held on for dear life before claiming a 43-41 win against Tulsa (Okla.) Union on Monday night.
The teams were both playing their third game in three days, which made it even more crucial when the Crusaders knocked down 5-of-11 3-pointers in that opening half at Fleming Fieldhouse.
Isiah Sykes, who scored 22 points on his way to winning the tournament's Most Valuable Player award, had three of those 3s.
"Our legs were tired, but we knew their legs were tired, too," he said. "We just had to push through and get the win.
"We could have tired legs after the game, but during the game we had to make our legs seem like they were brand-new."
The Crusaders managed to go 3-for-3 in a tournament boasting the best top-to-bottom field in recent memory.
"The quality of every team in this tournament was good," Sykes said. "Even the teams that didn't make it to the championship probably could have made it in other years. They really stacked this tournament up this year."
Union led just once, at 2-0. That's when Helias ripped off 12 straight points to take control, and the Crusaders led 13-4 at the end of the first quarter.
"We thought it would be a grind-it-out game and the opposite happened in the first quarter," Helias coach Josh Buffington said. "We came out on fire and were hitting shots ... and built ourselves a lead, thank goodness."
The lead grew to 15 points twice in the second quarter. The first was at 23-8 on a 3 by Weston Porter, and the second was at 25-10 on an Adam Bax layup with four seconds left it the first half.
"We expected them to play a fast pace and we wanted to speed them up," Buffington said. "But to be honest, our legs weren't there. Nobody's legs were there.
"The third day of this tournament, usually you see the worst basketball as far as the basketball going in the basket, at least as long as I've been a part of it. But where we were not sloppy - and it's the reason we won - was taking care of the basketball and our intensity on the defensive end and on the boards."
That would be key, as the Crusaders' offense dried up after intermission. Helias made 9-of-21 shots (43 percent) in the first half, but only 5-of-17 (29 percent) in the second.
Union stormed out of the locker room and immediately started to pound the ball inside, as the Crusaders were playing without starting center Hale Hentges, who's in Florida for the Under Armour All-America High School Football Game.
While Helias made up for it by getting strong inside play from the trio of Adam Bax, Casey McCollum and Trevor Koelling, the fouls started to mount up as Union's Ethan Chargois and Adrian Rodriguez were relentless inside.
But they missed just often enough, and when they did, McCollum was usually there to clean it up. He ripped down a game-high 11 rebounds.
"Casey played extremely well on the defensive end tonight," Buffington said. "He's played two very good games in a row."
The Crusaders' lead kept dipping in the fourth quarter, falling to two points three different times in the final minute.
The last time came when Union's Vincent Watts made a layup for the game's final points with 4.9 seconds left.
Helias then missed a pair of free throws with :03.5 remaining and Union called timeout with the ball near halfcourt and :00.8 left. Out of the timeout, they were unable to get a shot off before the buzzer.
"We were solid on the defensive end, especially on big possessions where they could have tied it up or taken the lead on a 3," Buffington said.
The win moved Helias to 8-2, while Union suffered its first loss of the season, falling to 5-1.
"It's not often you get to play in the championship game of a tournament," Sykes said. "You've got to work your rear off to get there and that's what we did. We knew this was a great opportunity and we didn't want to waste it."
Sykes was the only Helias player to reach double figures in scoring. Chargois had a double-double for Union with 11 points and 10 rebounds, while Nile Felton had a team-high 12 points.
Notes: The 43-41 final was the sixth-lowest combined score in a championship game. The tournament record for futility was the 38-36 win posted by Mount Lebanon (Penn.) against West Creek (Clarksville, Tenn.) in 2010. ... In addition to Sykes, Bax, Sam Husting and Collin Caywood made the all-tournament team for Helias. ... Chargois and Robert Ellis made the all-tournament team for Union.