ELKHART - For the season, Ryne Robinson is listed as the second-leading scorer on Warsaw's varsity boys basketball team.
Saturday night, however, in the championship game of the Elkhart Sectional, the 6-foot-3 junior was the Tigers' go-to guy.Robinson, who averages 16 points per contest, scored 22 of his game-high 28 points in the second half, leading Warsaw to a thrilling 57-56 win over the host Elkhart Central Blue Blazers at historic North Side Gym.
His final two points of the evening came on a tough fadeaway shot in the lane with a defender draped all over him and just two seconds remaining on the game clock.
Robinson, who scored 16 of Warsaw's 19 points in the third quarter, lofted up a game-wining shot that seemed to float in the air as time stood still and then hung on the rim before falling through the cylinder.
"That ball sat on the rim like a hummingbird with sore feet," said sixth-year Warsaw coach Doug Ogle, whose team improved to 14-8 on the season.
Asked to describe his game-winning shot, Robinson said he didn't know how he got the shot off with 6-6 Elkhart Central sophomore Joshua Riikonen in his face, let alone get the shot to fall.
"I don't even know," said Robinson. "But it's a dream come true. I've always dreamed of hitting the game-winning shot."
It's no longer a dream, and the reality is the Tigers will play in Saturday's Michigan City Regional against the winner of the South Bend Sectional.
The sectional championship game between Riley (19-5) and Washington (17-5) was postponed until tonight because of Washington's girls team playing in Saturday's state championship game.
Warsaw will play in the first game of the Michigan City Regional, with tipoff scheduled for 10 a.m. CT. In the second semifinal game, No. 6 East Chicago Central (19-3) will play the winner of tonight's Michigan City Sectional championship game between Crown Point (16-6) and Hobart (14-8).
Saturday's regional championship game is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. CT.
"I couldn't be happier for our players," said Ogle. "To come up here and win the sectional with no seniors, I'm very proud of these guys."
Elkhart Central, playing the role of Cinderella in Class 4A Sectional 4 with exciting upset wins over Northridge and Goshen, got one more chance to try and wear the glass slipper Saturday night, but the Blue Blazers' long inbounds pass was knocked away by Warsaw sophomore Zack Linky.
The Blue Blazers, who lost 75-59 in the Tiger Den on Dec. 15, finished the season with a 6-18 record.
"Elkhart Central had a heck of a sectional," said Ogle. "You have to give Coach (Mike) Drews a lot of credit. They really came out and played hard. They're a lot better than their record indicates."
The Blue Blazers beat Northridge 59-56 in the sectional opener, and then rallied from 16-points down against Goshen Friday to beat the Redskins 55-47 and advance to the sectional final.
Elkhart Central had one last big rally in them against the Tigers, too, and in the closing seconds Warsaw had its back against the wall.
The Tigers led 15-12 after the first quarter and 28-27 at halftime.
In the third quarter, as Robinson put the team on his shoulders, Warsaw used a 16-2 run to take a 44-31 lead.
"We started attacking the basket more," said Robinson. "We stopped settling for outside shots and got the ball inside."
The Blue Blazers didn't go away, though, and with 2:28 remaining in the game Mark Sutter's field goal tied the game at 54-all.
Junior Chase Byerly gave the Tigers a 55-54 lead by hitting the second of a two-free throw opportunity, but seconds later he fouled out, putting Riikonen at the line.
With 23 ticks on the clock, Riikonen was fouled by Byerly and still managed to get his shot to fall, giving Elkhart Central a 56-55 advantage. He missed the free thow, however, that would have converted the three-point play, but Sutter came up with the rebound.
With 20 seconds left in the game, Sutter missed the front end of a one-and-one free throw opportunity, and Warsaw sophomore Andy Condrad came up with the rebound.
The Tigers worked the ball around, and with time running down Robinson drove the lane and put up the game-winning shot in traffic.
Ogle said afterward that the play was designed to go to Robinson, it just never developed, and the talented 6-3 junior made it happen himself.
"The play was supposed to go to Ryne, it just never organized," said Ogle. "Ryne did a great job of making something happen."
While Robinson was the hero, and the Tigers' go-to guy in the second half, the first half belonged to 5-8 freshman Nic Moore, the team's leading scorer at 17 points per game.
After scoring 29 points Friday against Elkhart Memorial in his first-ever postseason appearance, Moore put up 15 points in the first half against the Blue Blazers.
He didn't score in the second half, but Warsaw had Robinson.
"It feels good to win the sectional," said Moore. "We wanted that feeling of cutting down the nets. Elkhart Central didn't give up, but Ryne hit that shot for us, that was awesome."
Conrad chipped in with five points for Warsaw, while Justin Clemens, Taylor Long and Byerly scored three points each.
For Elkhart Central, Jamar Johnson scored 18 points, while Riikonen finished with 16 points. Korey Carpenter added seven points, while Sutter finished with six points.
