BANDON - The Tigers are back in the state tournament.

Bandon's boys basketball team edged visiting Creswell 50-48 on Friday to reach the Class 3A state tournament in Salem. They will face Riverside in the first round Wednesday afternoon at Willamette University.

“I'm totally stoked,” said Bandon's Darren Stolz as he accepted congratulations among a sea of fans on the floor following the victory.

The Tigers saw an early lead evaporate and trailed by one entering the fourth quarter before turning the tide in their favor by holding Creswell scoreless for nearly four minutes.

“We just D-ed it up hard-core and came out with the win,” Stolz said.

The defense made the difference, the players said.

Creswell shot just 18-for-47 from the floor (38 percent) and 3-for-16 from 3-point range. Even more important, the Bulldogs had just nine fast-break points, two in the first half.

“We wanted to be intense on defense,” said Bandon's Ricky Pruitt. “We knew what we had to do. Coach prepared us well.”

That included the importance of getting back to stop Creswell's quick-strike attack.

“Our defense was great,” said Bandon's Jessie Hull. “We just stayed focused.”

Bandon started hot, hitting its first four shots and going up 15-4 less than five minutes into the game on a 3-pointer by Stolz.

Hull had eight of his 12 points in the opening quarter and Bandon led by nine early in the second on a 3-pointer by Pruitt before Creswell started clawing back into the game.

Bandon's lead was just 24-21 at halftime and Creswell pulled in front 35-34 entering the fourth quarter.

But the Tigers wouldn't be denied on their home floor.

“It's all heart,” Pruitt said. “We wanted it more.”

Marc Rogers tied the game with a free throw early in the fourth and Devin Nolan had his only basket of the game off an offensive rebound to put the Tigers in front for good.

Bandon then answered every challenge, going up 43-37 when Stolz and Rogers traded assists to each other for baskets inside. Creswell cut the lead to two again, but Rogers, Hull and Justin Smith each scored inside as Bandon broke Creswell's pressure.

Creswell had one last gasp, getting a 3-pointer by Aleks Gabrio to cut the lead to four with 20 seconds remaining and a basket by Ryan Beltran in the closing seconds after two missed free throws by the Tigers. But Creswell was out of timeouts at that point and the game ended by the time Bandon passed the ball in and the Bulldogs tried for one last foul.

Bandon coach Matt Angove celebrated with his team by cutting a strand of the net on the south end of the floor. He admittedly was relieved to hold off the Bulldogs' rally and earn another tournament berth.

“I'm just so happy for these kids,” said Angove, adding that Bandon had heard rumblings that Creswell would win because the Bulldogs came out of the tough PacWest Conference.

“The end of the third quarter, I really thought they had the momentum,” Angove said. “In the fourth quarter, we just went inside to Marc.”

Rogers finished with a team-high 14 points, nine in the second half. Smith added 11 and Pruitt six. Stolz had seven assists and five points, while Hull had eight rebounds and three steals to go with his 12 points.

Jake Thomas was the only Creswell player in double figures, finishing with 14 points. Ryan Beltran added nine and Dasem Dulany eight points, eight rebounds, three steals and three assists.

Creswell coach Stan Mercer said Bandon's home-court advantage was a factor in the game.

“I think that's one thing we learned tonight,” he said. “Finish better in league (so you get to play on your home court).”

Mercer was pleased his kids battled back from the early deficit and fought to the end.

“I couldn't be more proud of them,” he said. “There's no quit ever in them.”

Mercer said Bandon's defense bothered the Bulldogs, but also that Bandon's playoff experience was too much to overcome.

“There's not a kid on (our) team with playoff experience,” he said. “I thought we got to where we were forcing the issue a little bit and they weren't.”

And it's Bandon that will be playing in Salem next week, a feeling the players celebrated Friday night.

“Words can't explain it,” Pruitt said of his joy.

Notes: The Tigers will be honored in a breakfast of champions Sunday morning from 8 to 11:30 a.m. at the Bandon High School cafeteria. The all-you-can-eat breakfast costs $6 for adults and $4 for children 2 to 12 years old. The menu includes pancakes, french toast, hash browns, eggs, ham, sausage, fresh fruit and beverages. ... Wednesday's game against Riverside is scheduled to start at 3:15 p.m. Admission is $6 for adults and $4 for students and also is good for the 1:30 p.m. game between Santiam Christian and Valley Catholic.