XENIA — Bellefontaine lost 62-52 to Oakwood in Division IV boys basketball tournament play on Wednesday evening.
The Chieftains finish the season with a record of 10-14 overall. They were 3-7 in the Central Buckeye Conference.
Bellefontaine led at the end of each of the first three quarters, but was overwhelmed 22-7 in the final eight minutes, going six minutes without scoring.
Grayson Lotts led the Chieftains’ scoring with 17 points.
Jacob Salyer had 11, Jair Mundy added nine, and Braylon Newcomb got eight. Patrick Stolly scored twice from the field and Jamison Clement got a three-pointer round things out.
The Lumberjacks had four players reached double figures. The high scorer was Luke Rubin with 23. Michael Woese had 11, and Jackson Thobe and Owen Hoersting put in 10 apiece.
Oakwood raises its record to 19-5 for the year. They will face Taft, which defeated Bishop Fenwick 53-48, for the district final.
In the first quarter, Bellefontaine built a 14-12 lead. Mundy had three baskets and a free throw, Lotts hit a 3-pointer, while Stolly and Salyer had one score each.
Lotts had eight of the Chiefs’ 11 second quarter points, hitting twice from beyond the arc. Jamison Clement had a 3-ball. Oakwood also had 11, which gave Bellefontaine the 25-23 advantage.
The third period saw both squads heat up offensively, with Bellefontaine putting in 20 and the Lumberjacks nearly matching it with 17. Lotts and Newcomb had six each, and Salyer had four. Stolly and Mundy put one through the hoop apiece.
Oakwood then began its rally, going from down 45-40 to up 52-45. Bellefontaine would hang in for a bit longer before the Jacks closed things out. Salyer made two shots and a free throw, and Newcomb had the other two points.
Oakwood and Taft will square off Saturday at 6 p.m. in Middletown, with the victor moving on to the regionals.