The Lutheran North Crusaders are the Missouri Class 3 state champions in boys’ basketball for one basic reason: They simply outworked every team in their path to the title.
When the Crusaders were struggling in January with a 7-7 record, they rolled up their sleeves are worked a little bit harder. The end result of Lutheran North’s hard work was a 72-63 victory over perennial state power Charleston on Saturday afternoon at The Mizzou Arena in Columbia.
Lutheran North, who finished the season with a 22-10 record, became the first team in 22 years to win a state title with at least 10 losses. Competing against a Charleston team that featured 6’6″ All-State performer Ashton Farmer and two athletic 6’4″ forwards, the smaller Crusaders out-scraped the Blue Jays to their second state title in four years. Lutheran North won the Class 2 state title in 2002. The Crusaders had to fight for every rebound they could and won the battle for virtually every loose ball because of sheer hustle.
“We just had to play harder than they did because we were small,” said 5’11” senior forward Jeff Leslie, who scored 11 points in the finals. “We had to box out and play tough. That is how we won games this year.”
North coach Brett Reuter was extremely gratified to watch his team work its way out of its midseason malaise to become state champions.
“I’m just extremely proud of these guys because they played so hard and competed so hard,” Reuter said. “They were a lot bigger than we were, but our kids didn’t back down for a second.”
The Crusaders utilized a stingy defense to make its late postseason run, holding three opponents to under 40 points during the state playoffs. However, they came up with their best offensive game of the season at the right time. Their 72 points in the state finals tied their high input for the season. They shot 49 percent from the field and made 25 free throws, which was 13 more than Charleston attempted.
Lutheran North’s biggest offensive punch came from their smallest player in sophomore guard LaRico Martin. Listed generously at 5’7″, the diminutive Martin put on an offensive show with a game-high 28 points. Martin hit all three of his 3-point baskets in the first half to get the Crusaders going after a slow start.
“After I hit the first shot, I got a lot of confidence in my 3-point shooting,” Martin said. “I felt my team needed me and they kept getting me open shots.”
Martin hit seven of his 14 attempts from the floor and converted 11 of 12 from the free throw line. Martin helped clinch the victory by hitting seven free throws down the stretch to hold off a late Charleston rally.
Fellow sophomore Rolandis Woodland chipped in with 16 points and five rebounds. Senior point guard Mike Woods was the fourth player to score in double figures with 10 points.
“It was by far our best offensive game of the entire playoffs,” Reuter said. “We have struggled on offense in the postseason, but we saved our best performance for the last game.”
The state championship was also special because this year marked the 20th anniversary of the 1985 Lutheran North team that advanced to the Class 3A state title game before losing to Malden, a team from Southeast Missouri. The members of both teams were on hand to be honored at halftime for its 20th year anniversary celebration.
“Near the end of the game, I saw all of the guys from the 1985 team coming down near the end of the game, and they all had smiles on their faces,” Reuter said. “They were proud of their alma mater.”
