CANDO - After injuring his ankle late in the first quarter, Beulah senior guard Trevor Zacher could only watch from the locker room while receiving medical treatment.
He didn't like what he was seeing on the television screen.
"We were kind of settling for some shots and I told coach, 'Someone has to attack. I'm going to go in there and do that,' and I did," Zacher said.
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Ryan Collingwood/MDN
North Star senior guard Brooks Larson goes up for a shot during a game against Beulah on Friday at North Star School. Second-ranked Beulah defeated the No. 1 Bearcats behind Trevor Zacher’s 25 points.
Zacher's team-high 25 points led the second-ranked Miners to a 68-63 victory over top-ranked North Star on Friday at the "North Star Jamboree."
North Star senior guard Jacob Hagler did all he could for the Bearcats, scoring a game-high 31, but Zacher stole the show and ended North Star's home winning streak that stretched back five years.
"When he went out there I was a little concerned because he was hobbling pretty good and I didn't know what he'd be like," Beulah coach Jeremy Brandt said. "I'm sure he's sore, but his performance didn't seem to affect him. He was still aggressive and had a big game for us."
The Miners took an eight-point lead into the fourth quarter, only to see their lead quickly dissipate. The Bearcats cut the deficit to one and had possession. But North Star threw the ensuing inbounds pass out of bounds and the Miners scored the next six points. North Star coach Jeff Hagler said that was the difference in the game.
"We had a play we wanted to run and we just kind of went blank for a second and we had all the momentum in the world," he said.
Beulah's depth wore out the Bearcats late in the game, leading to shots falling short and offensive rebounds for the Miners.
"We were tired," coach Hagler said. "You could tell on our shots. Shots we normally made weren't going down because we were tired. It's hard to shoot when you're tired. We had a couple guys that didn't get a break."
Neither team could get separation in the first half. The Bearcats held the lead for the majority of the half, but when North Star threatened to break the game open, the Miners countered with two 8-0 runs. The first run gave Beulah a 25-23 lead and the second ended with the Miners holding a 35-29 advantage late in the opening half.
North Star scored the final four points of the half to cut the Miners' lead to two heading into the intermission.
The third quarter belonged to the Miners, who outscored the Bearcats 16-10 to take a seven-point lead heading into the fourth quarter. Zacher tallied half of Beulah's points in the frame, including a 3-pointer to open the second half. Zacher hit the Miners' only two 3-pointers in the game.
"Win or lose tonight, these are the game that are good for us for the regular season because they make us better throughout the season," Brandt said. "It's a nice win for us."