By John RittenhouseThe Luverne boys’ basketball team bowed out of the South Section 3AA Tournament Thursday in Redwood Falls.The fourth-seeded Cardinals were unable to knock off No. 1 Redwood Valley in a semifinal-round game that went to the hosts by a 68-47 tally.Luverne’s loss ended its 11-15 season. RWV advanced to the championship game with the victory, where it was upset by Pipestone in Saturday’s final at Southwest State University in Marshall.Thursday’s game between Luverne and RWV was the third time the teams met this season, and all three went to RWV in convincing fashion.RWV secured 17- and 20-point wins over the Cardinals in the regular season, and it took the finale by 21 points."Playing on RWV’s home floor made it a tough situation for us," said Cardinal coach Tom Rops. "They just shot the ball too well."RWV assumed control of the game in the first quarter, when it drained three three-point shots on the way to a 20-5 scoring advantage in the period.The hosts used a 19-13 scoring cushion in the second quarter to open a 30-18 halftime lead.Luverne trimmed the difference to 20 points (51-31) by the end of the third quarter, but RWV’s 17-16 scoring edge in the fourth quarter made it a 21-point difference at game’s end."They completely dominated us," Rops offered. "They shot the ball extremely well. We had some open looks early, but our shots wouldn’t fall."Forward Kelsey Mattison and guard Brian Busack led RWV in scoring with 16 and 11 points respectively.Junior Brandon Deragish pumped in a game-high 12 points for Luverne.Senior Josh Lange capped his career with a 10-point, four-rebound effort. Brad Herman added four rebounds to the cause. Senior Andy Stegemann and Jake Hendricks recorded three assists each.Box scorePick 1 0 0-0 2, Herman 1 0 0-0 2, Deragisch 3 2 0-0 12, Stegemann 1 0 4-5 6, M.Boelman 3 0 1-1 7, Lange 5 0 0-0 10, Graphenteen 0 1 0-0 3, Ward 0 1 0-0 3, Hendricks 0 0 1-2 1, Heronimus 0 0 1-2 1.Team statisticsLuverne: 17 of 31 field goals (55 percent), seven of 10 free throws (70 percent), 21 rebounds, seven turnovers.RWV: 23 of 43 field goals (53 percent), 17 of 22 free throws (77 percent), 20 rebounds, five turnovers.
