The rematch had more at stake than the regular season finale, but the results were the same.
With seniors Drew Johnson and Jack Davies leading the way in their final appearance on the home court, the high school boys basketball team pounced early and built a big early lead, and it was all-Ely all night as the Timberwolves cruised past Fond du Lac 78-50 in a Section 7A playoff opener at the Memorial Gymnasium.
The Wolves, who used a late-season spurt to jump to the number-five seed in 7A, move on to a section quarterfinal tilt with number-four Barnum at 12:30 p.m. Saturday at the Hibbing Memorial Arena.
Ely, now 21-7 had defeated Fond du Lac 60-43 just four days earlier, and the 12th-seeded visitors had little time to turn things around, The Ogichidaag were backed by a big crowd that made their way north, complete with a pregame ceremonial drum circle, but the fan support didn’t faze the hometown Wolves, Johnson poured in 27 points and helped set the tone early, He also finished with 11 rebounds and five assists. “Drew was locked in from the start,” said Ely Head Coach Tom McDonald, The Wolves pressured Fond du Lac into mistakes, often turning FDL turnovers into e asy b uckets. E ly led 40-21 at the half, and Johnson had 17 points already by the time the halftime horn sounded.
Fond du Lac could do little to gets its throng of fans going, and by midway through the second half it was a laugher.
The Wolves opened a 26-point lead by the midway point of the second half and the rout was on.
Davies finished with 19 points for the Wolves and junior Wyatt Tedrick completed the trifecta with 10 points,.
The win sets up a rare postseason matchup with Barnum, which has the number four seed and moved on with a 99-54 victory over Hill City-Northland.
It’s believed to be the first Ely-Barnum playoff matchup since 1983, when the Bombers downed the District 27 champion Wolves 60-43 at the Duluth Arena on their way to a state Class A title.
McDonald conceded he knew little about the Bombers, who are 22-5 this season. This is the first time McDonald has ever coached against Barnum in a career in Ely that dates back to the fall of 1990.
“I will have to watch some tape on them,” he said, “They are big and athletic I have heard.”
The Ely-Barnum winner will advance to a 7A semifinal on Wednesday, also at Hibbing, against either topseed Cherry or Cook County.
• Ely celebrated Senior Night Feb. 27 with its first victory against Fond du Lac. The Wolves led 32-25 at halftime and slowly pulled away to the double digit win. Senior Tyler Fritz hit a couple of key three-pointers that extended the Wolves’ lead and Johnson wound up with a game-high 27 points, Tedrick poured in 20 as Ely gained its 20th win of the regular season
