Westminster Christian advances to regional final

Westminster Christian coach Bruce Firchau had a message for his team during a timeout after North Shore Country Day exploded for an 18-4 run to take a 41-36 lead with 5:14 to play in Wednesday's Class 1A regional semifinal in Elgin.

"I just said 'not tonight, you can't let this go,'" Firchau told his Warriors.

Junior center Ian Dutcher (6-foot-8) responded after the timeout by scoring a three-point play against North Shore center Eric Van Wart (6-8), and junior Luke Carani tied the game with a pair of free throws.

After three more lead changes and two ties, Dutcher finally sealed a 55-49 victory for Westminster Christian with 4 straight free throws in the final 27 seconds after he pulled down 2 defensive rebounds and was fouled each time.

The Warriors had missed 4-of-6 free throws in the final minute until Dutcher buried all 4 tries. He finished 13 of 14 from the line overall and the Warriors canned 23-of-32 free throws as a team.

"I just thought if I focused and didn't think about shooting, I would make them," Dutcher said.

"He shot 53 percent last year as a sophomore and he started the same way this year up until about the fifth or sixth game of the year," Firchau said of Dutcher. "Then we put a little rhythm into him and he has taken off. He was up to 66 percent going into tonight's game. When a big guy 6-81/2 can do that, some college is going to want him."

The victory advances top seed Westminster Christian (21-8) to the regional title game on its home court against No. 2 Chicagoland Jewish Academy (12-8) today at 7:30 p.m. The Tigers advanced by holding off Christian Liberty Academy 52-49 in Wednesday's second semifinal. Westminster defeated Chicagoland Jewish 60-43 on Feb. 2.

The battle of big men between Dutcher and Van Wart dominated the attention. Dutcher finished with 19 points and 6 rebounds; Van Wart had 13 points and 6 rebounds. Other players proved to be the X-factor for their teams.

For North Shore, that player was freshman guard Austin Curren. He scored 13 of his team-high 17 points in the second half and was the catalyst during the Raiders 18-4 run that bridged the third and fourth quarters.

For Westminster, that player was senior guard Ryan Beachler. His 11 points included steals he turned into layups at the start of the first and second quarters and a 3-pointer that beat the halftime buzzer. That shot gave the Warriors a 23-14 lead at the break.

Beachler said the way his team weathered the adversity of North Shore's mega-run in the second half showed heart and character. "We came back strong like champions do," he said.

Junior Luke Carani scored 11 points and posted 5 rebounds for Westminster. Sophomore guard Jake Bruce finished with 12 points for the Raiders.