In a battle of state-ranked teams that are a mirror of one another, something had to give.
Fortunately for Blair Oaks, it was a late 12-0 run that helped the Falcons fend off Linn for a 57-45 win in a physical game Friday night.
"It took awhile for us to feel each other out and kind of get a sense for the way the game was being played," Blair Oaks coach Ryan Fick said. "It was a very physical game, it was a classic. Both teams came in and worked extremely hard and we were fortunate enough there at the end to get some separation."
Linn, ranked seventh in Class 2, erased an 11-point deficit at the start of the fourth quarter and whittled it down to 42-37 with less than five minutes to play.
It was what the Wildcats needed after they struggled knocking down shots in the second and third quarters, hitting only 3-of-22 from the field and scoring a combined 13 points.
But the Falcons, ranked 10th in Class 3, didn't led the Wildcats (12-4) get any closer, as Blair Oaks (13-3) ripped off 12 straight points to take a comfortable 54-37 lead with under two minutes to play.
Daniel McCarty sparked the run by converting a three-point play. Blair Oaks hit seven more free throws during that stretch and finished the quarter going 14-for-19 from the charity stripe.
"We shot the ball well at the free-throw line and that kind of allowed us to gain some distance," Fick said.