<p>Not until Kelyn Hill’s halfcourt heave, which seemed to hang in the air for an eternity, popped off of the rim at the buzzer could Indian Creek exhale.</p><p>But survival is the name of the game in boys basketball sectional action, and survive the host Braves did — barely — by holding on for a 69-67 Class 3A semifinal triumph over Indianapolis Washington on Friday night.</p><p>Indian Creek (18-6) will face Beech Grove (15-7), who steamrolled Cardinal Ritter 70-43 in the first semifinal of the evening.</p><p>"I’ve played well and lost; I’ve played ugly and won," Braves coach Drew Glentzer said. "I’d rather win than lose."</p>[sc:text-divider text-divider-title="Story continues below gallery" ]Click here to purchase photos from this gallery<p>The Continentals (9-12) went ahead 67-66 when Jonathon Porter banked in a 3 from the top of the key with 34 seconds left, and they forced a loose ball at the other end — which would have been Indian Creek’s 26th turnover of the night. But the ball found its way to Mason Britt, who was fouled and knocked down two free throws with 28.9 seconds on the clock.</p><p>Porter then missed a 3 at the other end and Colby Marker was fouled on the rebound with 4.1 seconds left. He made his first from the line but missed the second, and Hill, who poured in a game-high 33 points, dribbled to the midcourt logo before letting the last shot fly.</p><p>Fortunately for the Braves, it didn’t go down — though Glentzer said he half expected it to.</p><p>Why? "We didn’t deserve to win," he said.</p><p>Hill scored 10 in the first quarter as the Continentals took an early 13-6 lead. Indian Creek responded with nine consecutive points, pulling ahead 15-13 on a three-point play by Xavier Ferris with 6:39 remaining in the first half.</p><p>The teams were tied six times before intermission, but Washington went into the break with a slim 30-28 advantage, largely a product of a defense that forced the Braves into 14 turnovers over the first 16 minutes.</p><p>Indian Creek evened it up again at 32-32 before consecutive 3-pointers from Daren Croney and Mike Williams started a surge that put the visitors back in front by as many as nine, 44-35, before another 9-0 run by the Braves tied it up with 2:08 left in the third.</p><p>Marker opened the fourth with a 3 to give the Braves a 52-51 edge before the Continentals scored the next six points, building the lead to 57-52 on a three-point play by Hill. Indian Creek then rallied, eventually pulling ahead at 61-59 on two Ferris free throws at the 3:29 mark.</p><p>Ferris finished with 24 points for Indian Creek, followed by Britt with 14. Gavin Hillenburg totaled 11 points and seven rebounds before fouling out, and Marker scored nine.</p><p>"We didn’t do anything very well," Glentzer said. "Gavin Hillenburg played great, played his tail off. Mason made some free throws late, Xavier made a few plays late, but we struggled with the physicality of the game a little bit. We just got them to turn it over enough to get back in it. Obviously we’re going to have to play way better than that to win tomorrow night."</p><p>Tonight, the Braves will try to end two long droughts. Not only will they be playing for their first sectional crown since 2000, but they’re also looking to end a 20-year dry spell against the Hornets, who have won the last 13 meetings in the series dating back to March 2 of 2000.</p><p>Glentzer doesn’t think that history will affect his players.</p><p>"They’re going to play their tails off and try to cut down the nets tomorrow," he said.</p>
