The high school basketball season came to an end the same way it started for the Bishop Garrigan boys basketball team, as the Golden Bears were defeated in the class 1A – substate 2 final in Humboldt on Saturday by the St. Edmond Gaels 78-61.
The journey known as the 2024-2025 basketball season began back on December 2nd for both St. Edmond and Bishop Garrigan, with St. Edmond defeating the Golden Bears 56-51 in that matchup. In the time between their season opening matchup and Saturday’s substate final, both teams would eclipse the 20 win mark, win district championships, and emerge as class 1A state tournament contenders.
The deciding factor on Saturday night came down to St. Edmond’s supporting cast stepping up around Hunter Horn, and an efficient offensive attack that generated numerous second chance opportunities, with the Gaels parlaying that into 45 second half points against the Golden Bears.
Horn, the St. Edmond junior, was his normal productive self, leading all scorers with 24 points while adding 12 rebounds. The Gaels would receive huge contributions from junior Jack McElroy, who came into the game averaging 5.3 points, but scored a career-high 18, and junior Carson Bargfrede, who entered averaging 9.2 points per game, but poured in 19 off the bench.
The Gaels were able to overcome the loss of their second leading scorer on the season, junior Jakob Koopman, who suffered an apparent knee injury during the third quarter and did not return to the game.
The Gaels never trailed in the second half after entering intermission leading 33-29. St. Edmond outscored Bishop Garrigan 22-19 in the 3rd quarter, taking a 55-48 lead heading into the fourth, becoming just the fifth team to outscore Bishop Garrigan in the 3rd quarter and fend off the surge coming out of halftime the Golden Bears have made a habit of producing throughout the season.
In the fourth, sophomore Michael Joyce started the scoring for Bishop Garrigan with a drive to the basket and a layup. After Bargfrede split a pair of free throws for St. Edmond, Joyce found Golden Bear junior Amaury Thomas under the bucket, as Thomas finished through contact and drew a foul to make the score 56-52. Thomas would miss the free throw, as senior Drew Muller grabbed the offensive board and kicked the ball out to junior Carter Schwab, whose three pointer was off the mark, as the difference on the scoreboard stayed at four points.
Following the missed three by Schwab, St. Edmond slammed the door shut on the Golden Bears with a 9-0 scoring run, while Bishop Garrigan went on a scoring drought of nearly four minutes, stretching from Thomas’ bucket with 6:41 left until there was just 2:54 remaining, as a right-hander from the lane by senior Trayton Cink finally broke up the Bishop Garrigan scoring drought.
During the nearly four minute scoring blackout of Bishop Garrigan, St. Edmond received a drive to the basket for two from Bargfrede, followed by Horn missing, grabbing his own missed shot, then finishing through a foul, although he would miss the free throw on the back end, with the score 60-52. A floater from the lane by Horn brought the score to 62-52, then coming out of a timeout by the Gales, Bargfrede buried a three to cap off the 9-0 run and make the score 65-52.
After a parade of free throws in the final two minutes, St. Edmond finished the fourth quarter outscoring Bishop Garrigan 23-13 over the final eight minutes, and 45-32 for the second half as a whole.
Bishop Garrigan did briefly grab the lead and momentum during the first half of the game. St. Edmond took an 18-11 lead on a three by McElroy with just over two and a half minutes remaining in the first. Following the McElroy three and a Golden Bear timeout, Bishop Garrigan ripped off a 13-0 scoring run stretching to the 6:46 mark of the second quarter before a timeout by St. Edmond Head Coach Adolph Kochendorfer.
Muller began the run with a three from the right wing to make the score 18-14, then a Schwab steal and runout layup brought the score to 18-16 at the end of the first. On Bishop Garrigan’s first possession of the second quarter, a screen by Thomas freed up Joyce to bank in a three point shot and give the Golden Bears the 19-18 lead. On the ensuing possession, Thomas blocked a shot, and got the ball to Schwab, who ran the floor and found Muller for two, making the score 21-18. Schwab would then steal a pass and find Joyce in the corner for three, capping off a 13-0 run and making the score 24-18, leading to the St. Edmond timeout.
The Gaels outscored the Golden Bears 15-5 for the rest of the first half, including the final nine points after another Joyce three put Bishop Garrigan up 29-24, as the Gaels took a 33-29 into the locker room. Eight out of the 15 Gael points during the run were generated by offensive rebounds, as Bishop Garrigan was held scoreless for the final 4:06 of the first half. St. Edmond finished the game with a 35-22 rebounding advantage. The Gaels also held a big edge in free throw shooting, making 17/25 shots from the stripe, while Bishop Garrigan finished just 3/10.
Joyce finished as Bishop Garrigan’s leading scorer with 23, while Thomas added 12, Schwab scored 10 with 8 assists, and Muller chipped in 8 points. Bishop Garrigan’s season ends with a record of 21-4, while St. Edmond improves to 22-3, punching their first state ticket since the 2012 season and 14th in program history.
