LINN, Mo. - The Linn Wildcats fought tough and hung with the No. 3 team in the state, but came up just short in the game's final minute Tuesday in a 50-46 loss to Monroe City in their Class 3 state sectional game at the Linn Dome.
Linn trailed by as many as six points in the final three minutes but Alek Peters made a 3-pointer from way beyond the arc on the right wing, a few steps away from the home bench, with :55.3 remaining to make it a one-possession game at 48-46.
The Wildcats got a stop on the other end, but Caleb Maassen missed a shot at the rim through contact that would have tied it and the Panthers collected the rebound and got a three-on-none layup to seal the game and advance to face O'Fallon Christian in the quarterfinals Friday.
"We had it there, just came up short," Linn head coach Clay Crouch said. "Like we always tell our guys, 'Give yourself a chance at the end.' We had our chance, and sometimes it just doesn't work out."
Maassen finished with game-highs of 18 points, eight rebounds and three blocks, and Andy Hueste finished with 10, including a pair of 3s, and five boards. Austin McKim added nine points and six rebounds and Peters had seven points and five rebounds.
Linn ends the season with a 16-8 record and a Class 3 District 8 title. Monroe City improved to 25-2.
The Wildcats scored first on a layup from Hueste and didn't look intimidated against a Panthers team that lived up to their billing. The first three minutes were cagey as the two sides felt one another out, with Monroe City up 4-2 at that point. McKim helped swing things back in Linn's favor with two free throws, then drew a charge.
Crouch was proud of his team's defense, both in the district title game, a 53-39 win against Iberia, and Tuesday against the Panthers for giving the team a chance down the stretch. Tuesday's game was the first time all season Monroe City had been held to 50 or fewer points in a game.
"I think our guys understood the last two games the kind of effort it was going to take, and they really showed up, executed our game plan defensively," Crouch said. "It was good enough Saturday, just wasn't quite good enough tonight."
Hueste and the Panthers' Kyle Hays, who scored a team-high 15 points, traded 3s, then Maassen got on the board with a pair of and-1s as he established himself on the low block. Maassen blocked a 3-pointer from Hays at the first quarter buzzer to ensure the Wildcats held a 15-14 lead.
Both sides exchanged scores until the game was tied at 19 midway through the second quarter, before Monroe City scored on four straight possessions, including a pair of 3s off the bench from Cade Chapman, keyed an 11-5 burst for the visiting team. The Panthers worked hard to keep the ball out of Maassen's hands, and after trailing by eight, Hueste's basket just before halftime pulled Linn to within 30-24 at the break.
Out of halftime, Maassen made three straight layups to get the Wildcats within one, at 31-30, forcing a Monroe City timeout with 5:27 left. Linn stayed within one point for the rest of the quarter thanks to a 3 from Hueste, a bank-shot runner from McKim and an up-and-under move in the lane from Peters before Joshua Talton made a basket to give the Panthers a 42-39 lead after three quarters.
"One of those things you worry about is if a team like that jumps all over you, but we withstood those early runs," Crouch said. "I told our guys, you just gotta take it a possession at a time, a few minutes at a time, you can't think too far ahead."
Talton hit a 3-pointer and Hays added a basket to make it 47-41 before Maassen scored with 2:42 remaining, then the Panthers were called for an offensive foul. On the next possession, Maassen tried to connect with McKim on a high-low post pass but the pass was picked off.
Monroe City missed the front end of the ensuing 1-and-1 - the Panthers were 1-of-4 at the foul line in the fourth quarter - but Maassen picked up his fourth foul trying to put back his own miss. Deion White hit a free throw on the other end and the Wildcats pushed the ball up the floor quickly, getting Peters an open look from the wing he knocked down.
After a Linn timeout with :09.4 to go, Hueste couldn't get a clean look at a 3.
The scene on the court after the game was emotional, as players went to hug family and friends after leaving the locker room. All five of Linn's starters, including Caden Robinson, and three of the team's reserves - Hayden Phillips, Kaleb Brandt and Drew Strope - are seniors, and played their last basketball game in a Wildcat uniform.
"These guys have been playing together for a long time, and some of those seniors I started coaching them when they were in junior high when they were eighth graders," Crouch said. "I'm not so sad about losing the game, I'm just more sad that I'm not going to get to coach these guys again, and that's really the part that hurts."