Eugene coach Craig Engelbrecht had a message for the Eagles in the locker room before Wednesday night's Class 2 quarterfinal game at Rackers Fieldhouse.
"We have to play hard for 32 minutes, or 36 minutes," Engelbrecht said.
It's as if he knew overtime was coming all along.
Dyson Samson made the go-ahead 3-pointer in the extra period and the Eagles added two layups off steals to pull past the fifth-ranked New Franklin Bulldogs for a 70-64 victory.
"I thought it was an evenly matched game," Engelbrecht said. "We said whoever makes the most plays is going to win.
"It was just a really good high school basketball game."
Eugene (20-6) advances to the Class 2 quarterfinals to face ninth-ranked Milan (24-3), which defeated eighth-ranked Van-Far 61-44 on Wednesday. The quarterfinal game is scheduled for 2:45 p.m. Saturday at Moberly Area Community College.
Eugene never trailed in the second half, and the Eagles led by as many as 10 points in the opening minute of the fourth quarter.
That's when New Franklin turned up the pressure. By the midway point of the fourth quarter, the Eagles had taken just three shots and committed five turnovers in those four minutes.
"When a team is 27-1, they know how to win," Engelbrecht said of New Franklin. "That's what I kept telling the boys all night long. Every time I've watched any tape on them, it doesn't matter what the score is, it doesn't matter what the situation is, they just keep playing, and they keep coming back."
The Bulldogs cut it to 51-47 with 4:59 left in regulation after Gavin Bishop drove the baseline for a layup. The score would stay the same for the next two minutes, and Eugene was able to run 58 seconds off the clock on one possession before drawing a foul. Tre Kempker made both free throws to put the Eagles back ahead by six with 2:43 on the clock.
Then it was Tyler Perkins' turn to take over for New Franklin. After hitting a 3-pointer from the left corner, Perkins got the ball back after a steal and drew a foul with 1:36 remaining. He made both free throws, closing Eugene's lead to 53-52.
The Eagles held onto the ball until New Franklin put Eugene into the bonus with 59 seconds left. However, the Eagles made just one of their next four free throws under a 1-and-1, and held just a 54-52 lead with :22.6 remaining.
However, Kempker got an offensive rebound off the last missed free throw, and he made a pair of shots at the line to push the lead to two possessions at 56-52 with :19.1 left. Bishop answered with a 3 on the other end to make it a one-point game, but he fouled out with :03.8 remaining, finishing with 18 points.
Kempker missed both free throws, leaving the score at 57-55. New Franklin's Crayton Gallatin got the rebound and passed to Perkins, who was inexplicably fouled with :00.9 remaining. After the game, Engelbrecht said there was miscommunication at that time, with Perkins being fouled thinking the Eagles had a three-point lead.
Perkins made both ends of the 1-and-1, forcing overtime with the score tied at 57.
"It would have been very easy to get down and to stay down," Engelbrecht said. "But they didn't. That was the key."
Samson opened overtime with a 3 from the left wing to put Eugene back ahead.
"The big thing was Dyson Samson hitting that 3," Engelbrecht said. "You get that lead after they just hit two emotional free throws."
Perkins scored New Franklin's next five points to make the score 62-60 - the Bulldogs' first lead since the first quarter - with 2:17 to play. Then Samson made his fifth 3 of the game, putting the Eagles back ahead 63-62.
"Dyson stepped up so huge tonight," Engelbrecht said. "Those were big, big points."
New Franklin committed just eight turnovers in the game, but two of them were crucial in overtime. Kempker went coast-to-coast for a layup after a steal, making the score 65-62.
Colin Wunderlich grabbed another steal in front of the New Franklin bench and cruised for a layup with :39 left in overtime, pushing Eugene's lead to 68-64.
"There were so many ebbs and turns in that game," Engelbrecht said. "Anything can happen."
Eugene missed six free throws in the fourth quarter, but Tyler Renn finished the game by making a pair of free throws with :08.5 to seal the win for the Eagles.
"I told him, 'I'm glad you made those last two, because now I can finally relax,'" Engelbrecht said.
Kempker led Eugene with 26 points and 13 rebounds.
"That atmosphere was amazing," Kempker said. "That was the best game I ever played in."
Samson added 19 points and Wunderlich also reached double figures with 10 points.
Perkins scored a team-high 22 points for New Franklin (27-2), which included banking in a 35-foot shot at the buzzer to cut Eugene's halftime lead to 32-31. Trevian Cowans added 13 points for the Bulldogs.
Eugene is looking to make its first trip to the Final Four since 1992, when it finished second in Class 2A. The Eagles last reached the state quarterfinals in 2014, but they lost 61-53 to Cardinal Ritter.
"We get to go back to practice," Engelbrecht said with a smile.