Metamora basketball and its star kept focused and made program history

OTTAWA — Ethan Kizer grew tired of sitting on the bench.

After picking up his second foul at the 6:34 mark of the second quarter, the Metamora junior remained parked on the sidelines for the rest of the first half. He provided encouragement to his teammates while calling out plays and getting the crowd going.

But his impact would be felt more on the court.

Kizer’s third-quarter spark helped lift Metamora to a 60-44 win over Wheaton St. Francis in the Class 3A Ottawa Supersectional on Monday. The No. 10 Redbirds (29-6) advance for a shot at top-ranked Chicago Simeon (28-5) in the 11:30 a.m. Friday state semifinal at the State Farm Center in Champaign.

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“We put in a lot of hours,” said Kizer, who is now a part of Metamora’s first state finalist boys basketball team, “and it’s just awesome that it pays off.”

The 6-foot-6 forward started the third quarter with the game tied 21-21. He immediately grabbed a rebound and then assisted on a Tyson Swanson layup. His drive to the basket put the Redbirds ahead for good — 26-24 — just 99 seconds into the frame.

Kizer finished with nine points, six rebounds, two steals and an assist.

“We’re not as good when he’s out,” Metamora coach Danny Grieves said. “I told him, ‘Just stay focused. You’re still going to have a tremendous impact on this game.’ … He brings so much to the table because everybody worries about him and gives us a chance to go off with other guys that are hard to guard.”

That was all part of a 15-3 Metamora push that started thanks to Swanson’s 3-pointer 45 seconds before halftime. It ended with Kizer’s bucket, five more points from Swanson and a Tyler Mason drive for a 33-24 advantage midway through the third.

Wheaton St. Francis (27-9), which scored 23 second-half points, finished the quarter with five points on 2-for-10 shooting.

“It was our defense,” Kizer said. “We were shutting down on defense and leading to run. Just kept on pushing it.”

Metamora’s stingy defense carried over to the fourth quarter, while the offense continued to play consistently. An eight-point run by the Redbirds opened the quarter before St. Francis made it a 10-point game – 45-35 with 4:21 to play.

However, that would be closest the Spartans got as Metamora made 6 of 7 free throws.

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“I’ll told them all year long, ‘Offense sells tickets but if we’re going to go anywhere, we got to defend,’” Grieves said. “… We’ve done a tremendous job of defending and taking (opponents) out of what they do best. That’s been the whole key.”

A dunk from Kizer off an alley-oop with 1:35 to play pushed that lead to 19, causing a large Metamora student section in the east endzone of the historic Kingman Gymnasium to erupt. His slam capped yet another eight-point run.

“Well, there’s a reason he has all the (scholarship) offers he does,” Metamora senior Zack Schroeder said, “and there’s a reason he’s as hyped up as he is. He’s the real deal.”

Swanson scored a game-high 18 points on 6-for-8 shooting. Schroeder added 14 points and four rebounds.

Metamora shot 59.4 percent (19-for-32) and 5 of 9 (55.6 percent) from 3-point land, getting one from Matthew Zobrist (seven points), Mason (seven points) and Schroeder along with two by Swanson.

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“If my teammates were hitting me when I’m open, that’s how we got to play,” Swanson said. “If I was open, I was going to shoot it.”

St. Francis committed 10 turnovers, while shooting 20-for-51 (39.2 percent) from the field. Brendan Yanusso scored eight points with six rebounds and three assists. Sean Killan chipped in eight and grabbed three rebounds.

Adam Duvall is a Journal Star sports reporter. Email him at aduvall@pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @AdamDuvall.

This article originally appeared on Journal Star: IHSA boys basketball supersectional: Metamora vs. Wheaton St. Francis