Friday’s loss to Alamosa didn’t end the Bayfield High School boys basketball team’s season.
Another one Saturday would.
The Wolverines fell 52-49 to the Mean Moose in the semifinals of the Intermountain League tournament in Pagosa Springs.
“Honestly, it’s a mixed feeling. We had a chance to beat them,” BHS head coach Jeff Lehnus said. “We’re trying to learn how to win these bigger games. The fact that we didn’t quite get it, I know, takes a little away from that. Right now the job is to mentally recover from a valiant effort and a great performance that fell a little short to transfer that into a belief and a desire to win.”
Dillon Hoselton led BHS with 13 points and six rebounds.
Ryan Phelps joined him in double figures with 11.
The Wolverines shot 40 percent from the floor as a team and grabbed 28 rebounds. They trailed 22-21 at halftime.
Alamosa’s 17-13 advantage in the third quarter gave the Mean Moose their cushion, as the Wolverines outscored Alamosa by two in the fourth quarter.
“It’s not like our other losses where we battled without key components of our team,” Lehnus said. “We have everybody, and it’s showing. With all our tools together, we’re a tough team.”
Six of Bayfield’s eight league losses have been single-digit defeats.
A win would have clinched a spot in the regional tournament. Now BHS (10-10, 1-8 IML) will need to beat Centauri in the third-place game at 4:30 p.m. Saturday to extend its season.
Centarui lost 60-57 to Pagosa Springs in the other semifinal.
“It’s about (Saturday). It’s about wanting the season to keep going and finding a way to do that,” Lehnus said. “We’re going to have to beat a team we haven’t beaten. We’ve measured progress all year. This is certainly progress (Saturday).”
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