SPRINGFIELD — Eaton’s upset bid came up just short in the first round of the boys Division II sectional with a 43-41 loss to No. 7 seed Urbana on Tuesday, Feb. 20.

In a tight game throughout, Eaton’s final shot, a three-pointer from just inside the midcourt bounced off the front of the rim as time expired.

“I’m at a loss for words initially, just because it was an incredible game, and a lot of things were happening in that game,” Eaton coach Sean Sims said. “We did a good job of establishing being the aggressor were super physical and I think that definitely played a factor in us being able to get out and get a good lead to start.”

After falling behind 4-0, Eaton, the No. 14 seed, scored the next 14 points to take its largest lead of the game at 14-4 almost three minutes into the second quarter.

Urbana responded with a 9-0 run to get within 14-13 with 1:30 left in the half. A three-pointer by Dominick Gramaglia (seven points) extended Eaton’s lead to 17-13 at the half.

“A testament to our defense, it was our best defensive game. I think the average 55 points a game that we held them to 43,” Sims said. “In the second half, they made a little bit of the run, and they were able to get to the free throw line a little bit and I think we were just kind of getting a little bit worn down on the defensive end.”

In the second half, Eaton extended its lead to 21-13 with six minutes left in the third, but an 11-0 run by the Hillclimbers gave them their first lead since late in the first quarter.

Eaton, seeking its first tournament win since 2012, opened the fourth trailing 29-28. Back-to-back three-pointers by Conner Bach (11 points, four steals) and Ramy Ahmed (16 points, eight rebounds) put the Eagles back on top 34-29. Eaton still led 36-32 with 4:50 left.

But over the next five minutes the Eagles turned the ball over five times and missed three shots to fall behind 38-36.

During that stretch an Urbana player needed medical attention on the bench, which delayed the contest for a short while.

“Just really sad what happened with the Urbana player. Tough that that has to happen right in the middle of the game, and I just feel bad for everybody at hand for that and I just hope he’s okay,” Sims said. “Prayers and thoughts his way and the Urbana team.”

Ahmed tied the game 38-all with 1:30 left. Urbana then retook the lead with 1:15 left. Eaton’s final lead (41-40) came on a three-pointer from Aaron Rogers with 38 seconds left. The Hillclimbers’ next three points all came from the foul line, the last coming with 4.5 seconds left.

That set up the Eagles final shot attempt.

“I’m just super proud of our guys. I think we went in it knowing that we wanted to win and thought we could win,” Sims said. “At the end of the day, and in a close tight knit game, we had 23 turnovers. That’s just not going to win you any games down the stretch.”

Sims, now in his third season, said he will miss the senior class of Ahmed, Gramaglia, Leslie Orr, Chris Atkins, Trey Harding and Quinten Peach.

“It just sucks because I’ve been with that group for three years and they’ve been with me from the jump and it’s going to be tough to just kind of part ways with them because they were with me from the start, and they’ve been with me through the ringer,” Sims said. “We’ve turned this program from winning one to two games to, eight, nine, 10. And I just can’t thank them enough for everything. I feel bad because they deserved to win that one and they busted their butt and did everything we asked. It’s going to be a tough, tough pill to swallow, but hopefully, our younger guys will be able to really learn the details and how intense it has to be for us to win close games like that. And hopefully, we can just keep moving this basketball program forward.”

Reach Eddie Mowen Jr. at 937-683-4061 and follow on X @emowenjr.