White River set the tone early and worked its way back into the semifinals of the Class B Boys’ State Basketball Tournament.

The Tigers opened a first-quarter lead and maintained it in a for a 72-56 opening round win over Faith on Thursday afternoon at Wachs Arena.

White River, a part of the state tourney for 18 consecutive years, used a 12-2 run to erase a brief three-point deficit and finished out the quarter leading 22-14.

White River coach Eldon Marshall said the strong start gave his team confidence early on.

“We had guys come out and hit a couple shots and it just gives you some confidence,” Marshall said. “That confidence is always good for the individuals and the team to come out like that and get a lead. We were able to dictate the tempo from then on.”

White River built its lead to as much as 15 points in the second quarter, and took a 36-24 lead into intermission. The lead was built, in large part, due to Joe Sayler and Nic Marshall who combined for 24 first-half points. Marshall had 13, while Sayler had 11.

Sayler noted that the start by the Tigers got the team off on the right foot.

“It’s the first game of the state tournament, you know you’ve got guys that have jitters, and to come out strong, come out focused, and have a lot of confidence just gives you a lot of confidence throughout the rest of the game,” Sayler said.

Despite the halftime lead, White River knew its advantage was not safe against the Longhorns.

“No matter what lead we had, we didn’t feel like it was safe at all, because they can all knock down threes,” Marshall said.

Faith would not go away, outscoring the Tigers 14-7 in the first four and a half minutes of the second half. The run included a four-point play by Faith junior Caden Selby, as the Longhorns cut the White River lead down to 43-38 with 3:30 left in the third period.

That’s when Marshall called a time out to settle his team down.

“They made a four-point play and that just gives them confidence back,” Marshall said. “Then Joe, he got the ball in his hands and he made some scoring plays down the stretch, and we were able to extend it back up and dictate the fourth quarter.”

White River was able to regain momentum after the timeout and built its lead to as many as 21 points in the final frame.

Sayler led White River with 24 points and six rebounds, while Marshall had 21 points and seven assists. Logan Wright had 11 points, while T.J. Beardt and Gavin Folkers each had six.

Faith (22-2) was led by Selby and Jackson Schauer with 15 points apiece. Schauer also led with eight rebounds and four assists. Rylan Palmer had 12 points, while Matthew Gray added six.

Faith plays Castlewood in the consolation semifinals at noon today.

White River (20-4) advances to the Class B semifinals at 6 this evening, where the Tigers will take on a familiar foe in Lower Brule. The teams met earlier this season at the DWU Classic, as well as playing a triple overtime thriller in last year’s Class B semifinal round. Both games resulted in Lower Brule victories. Marshall knows his team will be in for a challenge once again.

“It’s gonna be a tough battle,” Marshall said. “We really know each other well, and no matter who’s in that semifinal game we’re glad to be in it to try to give us that chance to get to the championship game.”

FAITH (22-2): Rylan Palmer 5 2-4 12, Jess Harper 1 1-2 3, Matthew Gray 3 0-0 6, Caden Selby 5 1-1 15, Jackson Schauer 7 0-0 15, Brigg Price 0 2-2 2, Waycee Nelson 1 0-0 3. Totals 22 6-9 56.

WHITE RIVER (20-4): Nic Marshall 9 2-2 21, Mackenzie Wike 2 0-0 4, Joe Sayler 8 5-6 24, T.J. Beardt 2 2-2 6, Gavin Folkers 2 0-0 6, Logan Wright 5 0-0 11, Ryatt Wooden Knife 0 0-0 0. Totals 28 9-10 72.

Faith 14 24 40 56

White River 22 36 54 72

3-point field goals – Faith 6-14 (Selby 4, Schauer, Nelson); White River 7-18 (Sayler 3, Folkers 2, Marshall, Wright). Total fouls – Faith 11; White River 9. Rebounds – Faith 21 (Schauer 8); White River 27 (Sayler 6). Turnovers – Faith 12; White River 9. Assists – Faith 10 (Schauer 4); White River 15 (Marshall 7). Steals – Faith 1 (Harper); White River 4 (Sayler 2).