Headed for retirement, Newburg principal and girls’ basketball coach Steve Guffey shed a few postgame tears and hugs for the group he’s overseen for more than a decade.
Newburg was the latest to fall victim to perennial final four contender Skyline in the Class 2 state playoffs, as the Lady Tigers used a dominant first quarter to down the Wolves 65-54 in a Class 2 sectional at Lebanon High School on Wednesday.
Skyline plays Pierce City (25-4 overall) in the Class 2 quarterfinals at 2:45 p.m. Saturday at Drury’s O’Reilly Family Event Center. The Lady Tigers will be going for their fifth straight trip to the Class 2 final four.
Like Skyline running into Crane at state from 2013-2016, Newburg had been stuck in a district with Plato and Crocker the past four seasons before capturing the school’s first district title since 2008 this year.
Newburg’s 2017 seniors – all six of which scored against Skyline – helped key the turnaround of a program that won only six games in the 2012-13 season. Newburg’s win total jumped to 16 in 2013-14 – Guffey’s first as coach – when the current seniors were freshmen.
It’s a group he’s been around a lot. Guffey’s daughter, Riley, scored 10 against Skyline.
“I walked into their classroom when these seniors were in 1st grade and I asked, ‘Who wants to play basketball?’” Guffey said. “That’s how it all started. They’re a special group to me. They’ve stayed at the house. They’re like my own daughters. We’ve played a lot of basketball, traveled all over. You developed kindred feelings toward them.”
Skyline proved too deep and too talented. Newburg went away from its normal man-to-man defense in the first quarter in favor of a zone defense, and Skyline made them pay.
“We thought we needed to keep them from getting in the paint,” Guffey said. “They’re so good at getting into the paint and breaking you down. That’s what we were trying to prevent, but we never closed any gaps.”
The Lady Tigers (28-2 overall) made three 3-pointers in the first quarter and led 18-5 after the opening eight minutes. Coach Guffey said he wanted to play zone to alleviate Skyline’s quickness and athleticism advantages.
“I didn’t put (my players) in a position to pull an upset here,” Guffey said. “I watched game film on Skyline. We never play zone and we tried to come out in a zone, hoping (Skyline) wouldn’t hit 3s. We just buried ourselves, 18-5 after that first quarter.
“They’re a great team, I hope they win a state championship. I think we proved to everybody else in the state, too, that we’re pretty dang good.”
Kaylee DaMitz led four Skyline players in double figures with 19 points. McKinsey Mountain added 17 points and Autumn Garrett scored 14.
“We knew (Newburg) didn’t care if they played fast or played slow, so we wanted to control the tempo,” said Skyline coach Kevin Cheek. “If it got into that 35-to-45 possessions game, they’d have a really good chance to win, so I didn’t want that.”
Skyline was never quite able to put the game away for good, as Kylee Brookshire’s basket brought the Wolves within 48-41 with 5:35 remaining. Skyline answered with a pair of free throws by DaMitz and a basket from Mountain.
“If you came in here and thought you’d win by 25, or you’re just happy to win, right now it doesn’t matter,” Cheek said. “In, 10, 12 or 15 years from now when they’re telling their nieces, nephews and kids, ‘Yeah, we beat Newburg in sectionals,’ that’s all they have to say. They don’t have to say, ‘We played well, we played bad.’ They won.
“This time of year, you’re just happy to win.”
Skyline was 22-for-30 at the free throw line overall, icing the win in the fourth quarter by making 15 of 20 attempts.
The final score marked Skyline’s closest game against a Class 2 opponent this season, and Newburg’s first loss to a Class 2 opponent.
Newburg finishes 24-5 overall and were led by Kylee Brookshire’s 21 points. The Wolves were ranked No. 10 in the final Class 2 state poll of the season.
Coach Guffey said Newburg was two students above the enrollment cutoff mark for Class 1 status this year. He expects Newburg to drop down to a Class 1 school during the next cycle of classification assignments, which will be in 2018.
“This group of girls, they have nothing to hang their heads about,” Guffey said. “They put banners on the wall. It’s a special group. I just feel bad. I should’ve had them playing in the first quarter the way we always play.”
Skyline has made the state final four 12 times, including eight occasions this century. The Lady Tigers own five state championships (1996, 1997, 2003, 2004, 2008).
Skyline 65, Newburg 54
Skyline 18 16 14 17 — 65
Newburg 5 13 14 22 — 54
Skyline – Kaylee DaMitz 19, McKinsey Mountain 17, Autumn Garrett 14, Lauren Wouters 6, Kristen Miller 5, Savannah Owen 4
Newburg – Kylee Brookshire 21, Riley Guffey 10, Allysa Dondlinger 8, McKayla Callahan 7, Mychaela Van Pelt 5, Alexis Stevenson 2, Audrey Suchanke 1
