TIPTON - The Helias Crusader JV team will play for a varsity tournament championship Saturday after beating the Vienna Eagles 73-66 in Thursday night's semifinal of the Tipton Tournament.
Vienna jumped out to a 14-2 lead, but Helias bounced back to cut its deficit to 20-15 by the end of the first quarter. The Crusaders tied the game at 33 by halftime and led 49-45 entering the fourth quarter.
Vienna briefly retook the lead at 59-58, but Landon King answered with a basket with 3:59 to play, giving the Crusaders the lead for good.
Jake Howell scored a team-high 21 points for the Crusaders and King finished with 16 points.
Helias JV (2-0), the No. 6 seed, will take on top-seeded Smithton at 6:30 p.m. Saturday in the title game.