RAPID CITY – Third-seeded Sioux Valley began Friday afternoon’s contest against seventh-seeded Groton by scoring the first six points and trailed just one time after that on the way to a 67-58 victory over the Tigers in the consolation semifinals of the State A boys’ basketball tournament.

The Cossacks, who were upset in double overtime by sixth-seeded Rapid City Christian in Thursday night’s opening round, employed a non-traditional defense against the Tigers, albeit one that Groton has seen many times this season. Sioux Valley blanketed Groton’s Lane Tietz with a defensive spy, content to force the Tigers to find other ways to score.

The strategy worked, as Tietz finished with just 11 points on 3-of-12 shooting from the floor and was scoreless from beyond the arc.

Groton countered with 19 points from Ryder Johnson and another 17 from Keegan Tracy. The sophomore duo combined for six of Groton’s seven 3-pointers and went 8-for-9 from the free throw line.

Tracy, in fact, scored eight of Groton’s last 11 points of the game, including a late trey in the fourth quarter that drew the Tigers to within one after being down by as many as 11 at one stage.

That comeback ran out of steam, however, as the Cossacks quickly pushed the lead back to a three-possession affair on the way to the victory.

Jacob Zak contributed nine points to the Groton total.

Alec Squires led all scorers with 31 points, proving to be a dominant presence in the paint where Sioux Valley outscored the Tigers 36-20. Groton held the advantage from the perimeter, but couldn’t overcome Sioux Valley’s 27 trips to the free throw line. Squires alone was 11-for-13 from the line.

Sioux Valley (22-3) will meet fourth-seeded Pine Ridge in the consolation championship at 1:45 p.m. (MDT) today, while Groton (19-6) will take on Vermillion in the seventh-place contest at noon (MDT). The Tanagers won a previous matchup by nine points over Groton during the regular season.

SIOUX VALLEY (22-3): Maxwell Engebretson 5 2-2 13, Jace Christensen 2 4-5 8, Hudsyn Ruesink 3 0-0 7, Alec Squires 10 11-13 31, Boden Schiller 2 3-5 7, Brock Christopherson 0 1-2 1. Totals 22-44 21-27 67.

GROTON (19-6): Keegan Tracy 5 4-4 17, Ryder Johnson 6 4-5 19, Lane Tietz 3 5-6 11, Jacob Zak 3 2-2 9, Colby Dunker 1 0-0 2. Totals 19-49 15-17 58.

Sioux Valley 14 35 51 67

Groton 12 28 45 58

3-point field goals – Engebretson, Ruesink; Tracy (3), Johnson (3), Zak. Fouled out – Groton, Logan Ringgenberg. Total fouls – Sioux Valley 18; Groton 24. Rebounds – Sioux Valley 33 (Squires 12); Groton 25 (Johnson 7). Assists – Sioux Valley 10 (Christensen 3); Groton 9 (Tietz 4). Turnovers – Sioux Valley 17; Groton 15. Blocks – Sioux Valley 3 (Squires 2); Groton 4 (Gage Sippel 2). Steals – Sioux Valley 12 (Ruesink 3, Engebretson 3); Groton 9 (Tietz 5).