Clock strikes 12 for Kouts
Mustangs’ magical season ends with loss in Class A state final, but Cale Wireman says ‘we gave it our best shot’
Mustangs’ magical season ends with loss in Class A state final, but Cale Wireman says,“We gave it our best shot.”
INDIANAPOLIS — Cale Wireman thought his team had a chance to win until the final minutes.
That’s the spirit Kouts brought to Saturday’s state championship game.
The Mustangs’ magical run ended against BarrReeve with a 64-48 loss in the Class A state final at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
The Vikings (29-2) had too much of everything for Kouts (29-3).
Too much size inside.
Too much defensive presence.
And too much poise and experience.
Even though the game was always firmly in control for Barr-Reeve, there was a time in the second half when it felt like Kouts was going to make a run.
It just never materialized. Once in the second half, Kouts cut the deficit — which had been in double digits — to seven points on a 3-pointer by Wireman with 2:37 left in the third quarter. That made it 37-30.
But that was as close as Kouts could get.
“That whole game, I didn’t feel like we were going to lose until maybe the last two or three minutes,” said Wireman, a 5-foot 11 senior guard who finished with 15 points. “That’s when I thought it might be over.”
Barr-Reeve was ranked No. 1 in Class A. Its only losses were to Carmel, a 4A team that beat West Side in the Lafayette Semistate, and Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian, a 2A team and the reigning state champion in Class A. Both losses were in overtime.
Last season, Barr-Reeve was 25-1 when the season was wiped out due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Vikings’ go-to player was Curt Hopf, a 6-9 senior center who has signed with Bellarmine. Hopf finished with 23 points and 19 rebounds.
The first half was when Kouts looked particularly uncomfortable.
The Mustangs, who entered the game shooting 56% from the field, trailed 26-14 at halftime after shooting just 6 of 25. Kouts was 0-for-6 from 3-point range in the first half.
Cole Wireman, a 6-0 senior guard who finished with 21 points, said it was hard to get off shots against the Vikings.
“They’re a really good defensive team,” he said. “Sometimes, you don’t see shots fall and you got to get into a rhythm. Barr-Reeve was a good team at keeping the tempo and keeping us out of our rhythm.”
Kouts coach Kevin Duzan said his team never recovered from the slow start.
“I thought we came out
with more energy in the second half,” Duzan said. “I also felt like we had some guys who played a little timid against a very good team.
“We knew what they were going to do. They were going to try to get it to Hopf inside. We just did not have any answers.”
The Vikings were able to slow down Kouts, which averaged 76 points a game this season, by getting back quickly on defense.
“We’re not a 3-point shooting team,” Duzan said. “We’re a team that attacks the basket. They just took that away from us.”
In the second half, Kouts added full-court pressure to speed up the game.
It worked to a degree. Just not enough to overcome a 12-point halftime deficit.
Despite the loss, it was a historic season for Kouts, which made its first trip to the state championship game.
The Wiremans, who combined to average 43 points, will depart as the best brother duo in the program’s history.
Cole said it was a season he will never forget.
“It was a fun year,” he said. “Our goal was to get to Indianapolis and we did. We gave it our best shot. It was fun because of the community and all the support we had.”