LINCOLN- After trailing by 11 at halftime, the Irish stable the Mullen Broncos in the second half to win 49-47.

The two-seeded Mullen Broncos seemed to be in charge for the entirety of ball game at Lincoln East against the seven-seeded Falls City Sacred Heart Irish. Whether it be the Broncos from beyond the arc, or flashy passes offensively, Mullen could seemingly do no wrong. That is, however, until halftime. 

The Irish trailed by double digits at the break, 28-17. Sacred Heart's offense came in spurts in the first half. The Irish would get within a couple scores of Mullen, and then right on cue sophomore Clayton Moore would silence the Falls City Sacred Heart hopefuls. Moore finished the night with a game-high 20 points.

The second half featured stifling defense and every possession for the Irish being amplified. Luckily for the Irish, they were up for the challenge. The third quarter was a seven point swing for Sacred Heart, as they clawed back within four points, 40-36, as the fourth quarter was about to begin.

The fourth quarter had both sides of Lincoln East on the edge of their seats. The Mullen offense slowed down drastically, thanks in part to the Irish's pesky 2-3 zone defense.

The Irish finally capped off the comeback with a three-pointer coming from sophomore Evan Keithley to tie it up at 47. That would remain the score for the last two and a half minutes until junior Jakob Jordan became the "big man on campus." Jordan drove into the lane and had enough space for a runner with about 30 seconds left. The shot was nothing but net, but the game everything but over. 

The Irish hung on to win and continue their quest for repeating as D-2 state champions, as they win 49-47 behind junior Jake Froeschl's 14 points.

The Irish will play in the D-2 semifinals Thursday, March 11th, at 11:15 against three-seeded Humphrey St. Francis. The Irish and the Flyers met last post season in the state championship where Falls City Sacred Heart won 45-33. 

Pre-game will be on B103 at 11:00 am from Pinnacle Bank Arena.