Justin St. Ours | Daily Press Bark River-Harris’ Trenton Wood-Keshick (22) shoots a layup between North Central defenders Carter Eichmeier (left) and Cole Timblin (right) as North Central’s Luke Gorzinski (21) looks on Feb. 28 at Bark River.

HARRIS — It was the second match-up of the year between the North Central and Bark River-Harris boys. The Jets had come off a tough loss to powerhouse Munising three days prior, and the Broncos were looking to add to their two-game win streak.

In their last meeting Dec. 23, the Jets earned a 65-53 win on their home floor on the same night Jason Whitens and Dawson Bilski had their jerseys retired.

This time around, the Broncos showcased a staunch defense, limiting North Central’s high-scorer Luke Gorzinski, and used some clutch shooting to edge the Jets 53-52 in front of a packed crowd Feb. 28. Bark River handed North Central one of six losses for the season and added to its win streak in this exciting Friday night game.

At the end of February, this game was perfect to get both teams and the audience prepared for the energetic and fast-paced district tournaments that would be happening shortly.

“You can’t replicate (the environment) in practice, especially the stressful free throws and things like that,” Broncos coach Marc Zawacki said.

“That’s something we talked about after the game. We’re only going to grow from this experience, and that’s a positive.”

Jets coach Mike Malone also felt the experience could help them out in the postseason despite the loss.

“I think this is good for us,” he said. “You can’t really appreciate how an environment like this changes your psyche until you’re in it. You can’t simulate this, so this is perfect heading into the tournament and districts.”

It was a story of free throws.

With 13.9 seconds left in the game, Carter Eichmeier made 1 of 2 from the charity stripe to give the Jets a 52-50 lead.

However, the Broncos hustled the ball back across the court to an open Nick Javurek who was sitting in the corner beyond the 3-point line. With just six seconds left, Javurek buried a triple to put Bark River ahead 53-52 for the first time since the second quarter.

“I’m just feeling happy that we won,” Javurek said. “It felt good (watching the shot go in). I practice that shot a lot with my teammate Dylon Lippens. We’re always practicing those catch-and-shoots around the outside, so right after the game, I looked at him and said, ‘That’s ’cause of you buddy.'”

With the crowd on its feet and at a fever pitch, North Central’s Ian Gorzinski got fouled on his way to the basket.

It was the Jets’ game to lose as he stepped up to the line with just 1.6 seconds left. However, both shots bounced out and the Broncos hung on for the win.

“Ian Gorzinski played absolutely fantastic tonight,” Malone said. “Those free throws — if I had to choose someone to take two free throws at the end of the game after a technical foul, it would be him. He shot fantastic tonight, and he shot with confidence. Sometimes the ball just doesn’t bounce your way.”

The Jets had used the first half of the fourth quarter to build a 45-37 lead, and it wasn’t until time started becoming scarce that the Broncos kicked into action, limiting North Central to almost only free throws.

“When we get these — obviously any win is great — but we knew it was going to be a tight game,” Zawacki said. “I didn’t think it would be that tight. It was a back and forth game, and emotions are pretty high in a game like this. Any time you can come out with a win, it’s nice.

“I thought our defense played pretty well. We stepped up and helped the helper and we limited their penetration. That was one of the keys coming into tonight.”

Trenton Wood-Keshick led the Broncos with 19 points. Javurek and Carter Zawacki followed with 11, and Riley Bray chipped in 10.

The Jets were led by Noah Gorzinski with 21 points and Luke Gorzinski notched 12.