Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy accomplished what it set it out to do. The Eagles shot Alter out of its 2-3 zone and built a big first half lead in the process.
It also brought bad news as the plan didn't work as well facing a new defensive style.
Alter in the end overcame a 12-point halftime deficit to defeat CHCA 65-54 in the Division IV district finals on Sunday at the Cintas Center.
"We're going to give up threes and they're such a great three-point shooting team," Alter head coach Eric Coulter said. "I knew that going in. They got hot early and needed us to overcome them shooting 50 percent in the first half.
"Even though zone is part of our culture, we might need to engage man-to-man and do some different things and that's what we did."
The Region 16 semifinals will see Alter take on Wyoming at 6 p.m. Thursday at the Cintas Center.
Alter trailed by as much as 16 in the first half as CHCA shot lights out from the three-point line. The Eagles were 10-for-19 in the first half, but were held to 25 percent shooting from the field in the second half.
A switch to multiple zone and man-to-man looks sparked Alter's defensive prowess as they held the Eagles to three points in the third quarter.
Junior Peyton Bakos led the comeback charge with a 24-point effort. Alter took the lead before the third quarter ended. CHCA pulled back within one near the midway point of the fourth quarter before Bakos scored five straight points and freshman William Peagler Jr. made a no-look layup to extend the lead back out to six.
Bakos also had his own 9-0 run while Alter outscored CHCA by 19 during the third quarter. He hit the go-ahead three to give Alter its first lead and one it didn't again relinquish.
"He sprained his ankle in the first quarter, so we had to get him re-taped and now he's got that issue. But we got the best training in Southwestern Ohio. I thought [Peyton] had some big shots at key times," Coulter said.
Jason Caimano connected on three straight three-pointers in the first quarter as CHCA started the game on an 11-2 run. Caimano scored 25 points and went 7-for-17 from beyond the arc.
CHCA (15-10) led 36-24 at halftime, but Caimano had the only points in the third for the Eagles.
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