The last time the Wellsville-Middletown boys basketball team went to the Final Four, Ronald Reagan was U.S. president, “The Cosby Show” was the No. 1 television show and “Livin’ on a Prayer” by Bon Jovi topped the music charts.

That year was 1987.

On March 5, the Tigers put an end to their 35-year Final Four drought, knocking off the North Shelby Raiders 66-59 in a Class 1 state quarterfinal game at Truman State University’s Pershing Arena in Kirksville to advance to the state semifinals for the fifth time in program history.

“I couldn’t be more proud of this team,” W-M senior Isaac Seabaugh said. “This has been the goal from day one.”

W-M will play the Stanberry Bulldogs in the state semifinals at 8 p.m. on March 11 at Missouri State University’s Hammons Student Center in Springfield. Stanberry (25-3) knocked off Green City 50-47 in a state quarterfinal game on March 5 in St. Joseph.

“I’m super excited,” W-M junior Jacob Mandrell said. “Out of all of my high school years, I was dreaming of going to state, playing in Springfield and making it happen.”

South Iron (26-4) and St. Elizabeth (18-10) will square off in the other semifinal at 6 p.m. on March 11. The third-place game and the championship game are scheduled for noon and 8 p.m., respectively, on March 12.

In 1987, W-M defeated North Shelby 86-74 in a state quarterfinal game in Kirksville to advance to the Final Four. The Tigers went on to finish second.

The Tigers never trailed against the Raiders in the 2022 state quarterfinal. They had a 29-18 halftime lead and led by as many as 16 points in the third quarter.

The Tigers improved to 20-6, making it the first time since 2016 they hit the 20-win mark. They advanced to the Elite Eight by beating Northwest High School of Hughesville 54-45 on March 1 at Harrisburg High School.

W-M extended its winning streak to a season-high eight games with the victory over North Shelby. W-M junior Logan Pursifull credits Eric Huff for the team’s outstanding season.

“He put in so much work for us,” he said. “He helped us during the summer. We went to tournaments and stuff.”

Senior Keaton Mayes finished with 21 points with eight rebounds and six steals to lead the Tigers. He said he was thrilled that his team cleared the state quarterfinal hurdle. Last year, W-M came up one victory short of going to the Final Four, losing to Salisbury in the Class 2 state quarterfinals at Montgomery County High School.

“It’s nice to finally make it through,” said Mayes, who scored 26 points in the win over Northwest. “The community is really excited and happy for us. It’s a great moment.”

Mayes is also happy that his high school basketball career has been extended to two more games.

“I’m looking forward to just hanging out with the team for another week, taking that trip down there, having some laughs and having a good time at the hotel we’ll probably stay at,” Mayes said.

Pursifull finished with 17 points, including seven in the first quarter. He also had three blocked shots.

“I was so ready for this game,” the junior said. “I was so excited. I really wanted to do it for my team and for the seniors, so I poured my heart into it.”

Seabaugh scored 10 points and grabbed nine rebounds before fouling out with 1:41 left in the fourth.

Seabaugh said he hopes he ends his high school basketball career with a state championship. W-M has never won a state crown.

“It will mean everything,” he said. “It will be amazing. It will be something that I’ve dreamed of since I was a little kid.”
Also for the Tigers, freshman Carson Huff added nine points and seven rebounds and Mandrell scored six points off the bench.

Robert Uhlmeyer scored 21 points to lead North Shelby, which finished its season at 20-7.

W-M struggled against the Raiders’ full-court press for most of the game. The Tigers finished with 24 turnovers.

“Their press was pretty tough,” Pursifull said. “But we got through it and we won the game.”