For a final effort, it wasn’t too bad to the Centralia boys.

Centralia vs Mexico District Title Photo Gallery

The Panthers lost the Class 4 District 8 championship game 66-46 on Saturday afternoon to the top seed and eighth-ranked Mexico. The Bulldogs ran away with the game in the final three minutes, though, as Centralia led Mexico 30-29 at halftime and was within striking distance 46-40 after three quarters.

Head coach Scott Humphrey, who coached Centralia for the final time before becoming the Troy Buchanan activities director next year, said he didn’t have much to complain about when it came to his players’ effort. 

"We always talk about meeting in the middle of the cage, and we were right there and swung for the fences early," Humphrey said. "The most proud I was in the third quarter, where it looked like they were going to run away from us and then we fought back.”

Mexico took a 46-36 lead in the third quarter for the game’s first double-digit margin, but Centralia cut into the deficit before the fourth quarter. Elliott McCoy found Noah Kropf for a fastbreak bucket as one of his three assists in a day that included eight rebounds and two steals.

“He’s a really good athlete that honestly can match anybody’s athleticism that we play against,” Humphrey said. “He brought us back and had a big assist that got us going. The better team won, but I was super proud of my kids for giving them our best shot.”

The senior Kropf gave Mexico his best shot in his final game as a Panther. That shot, in particular, was mostly from midrange. 

Kropf led Centralia with 20 points, including 12 points in the first half. Anthony Ford followed with nine points and seven rebounds to almost reach another double-double following two such games in districts, senior Cullen Bennett had six points and six rebounds, Logan Rosenfelder had six points, and senior Beau Hatton added three points.

“Noah had a great game that capped off a great senior year,” Humphrey said. “I don’t know if I’ve had a kid that has taken a bigger jump as far as role from junior to senior year that Noah did. He’s, in my opinion, a first-team all-conference kid and all-district type kid. I couldn’t ask for any better kids to coach.”

Mexico had several of its shots fall short, including a fastbreak layup by DJ Long near the end of the first half. There was an immediate change in the third quarter as the Bulldogs came away with more turnovers to put more pressure on the Panthers to respond. 

Long scored 19 of his 23 points in the second half to go with a double-double that included 11 rebounds, Jaydon Eldridge followed with 17 points and eight rebounds, and PJ Perkins finished with 12 points and eight rebounds. Those same players along with others gave Centralia’s offense some trouble.

“We tried to get the ball inside and had some success at that at times,” Humphrey said. “The difference was, in the second half, they turned their defensive pressure up, and there wasn’t a lot we could do with it.”

Humphrey said Mexico has a ton of athleticism to deal with that Centralia handled better than its first meeting with the Bulldogs, which was a 56-41 loss. He said the Panthers have looked better in the second half of this season after a good start — winning four of the team’s first five games — that preceded a rough patch of six losses in eight games.

Centralia kept working through it until the Panthers advanced to the Harrisburg tournament championship game in January — losing 63-55 to Blair Oaks — and eventually ran through the district bracket as the No. 3 seed. After edging Macon 47-46 in the first round, the Panthers upset their rival and second seed Hallsville 54-46 for the program’s first playoff victory over Hallsville since 2012 and first district championship berth since 2019.

"We were playing our best basketball in the last part of the season, which is what you want to do," Humphrey said. "Nobody probably picked us to be in the district championship, and we found our way in it and gave Mexico everything they wanted for three and half quarters. I've got nothing to complain about.

“I appreciate everybody in Centralia for giving me an opportunity the last eight years. It means a lot to me, and I hope I left it better than how I found it.”