‘We’re not done yet’: Brewer, Tigers remain locked in on mission following semifinal win

COLUMBIA, Mo. — Preston Brewer tamed his excitement.

As the Canton senior forward exited Wednesday’s Class 2 semifinal game against Puxico for the final time with the Tigers 1:12 away from securing the program’s first ever trip to a state title game, Brewer kept saying to his teammates, “One more.”

Brewer did not want to celebrate too much before the Tigers’ mission of winning that state championship was complete.

“I feel like we almost got a little too excited,” Brewer said. “I was like, ‘We’re not done yet. We have to win tomorrow.’”

Brewer embraced his teammates and coaches after the final buzzer sounded on the Tigers’ 65-50 victory at Mizzou Arena, but the reminder of what lies ahead — a date with Eugene, the top-ranked team in Class 2, in Thursday’s championship game — continued through the final huddle in the locker room.

“I tried to get them to calm down, and once I got them calmed down, they realized, ‘You’re right. We have to win one more,’” Brewer said. “In the locker room, we broke it down with, ‘One more on three.’”

Even though Brewer’s celebration was relatively subdued, the gravity of what he and the Tigers had accomplished was not lost on him. Canton had reached two previous final fours in its history — in 2014 and 2015 — but lost in the semifinals both times.

“I feel truly honored and blessed to be a part of this team that gets to make Canton history,” said Brewer, who had 23 points and 14 rebounds in the Tigers’ victory.

Fellow senior forward Tyler Frazier said the weight of the moment hit him when he exited the floor after sinking his second of two free throws that gave Canton a 65-48 lead, completing the Tigers’ wholesale substitutions.

“When the crowd was going crazy and we were being subbed out, it was like, ‘Oh, my gosh, this is happening,’” said Frazier, who scored 12 of his 14 points in the second half. “It’s an amazing feeling. I’ve never felt anything like it before.”

Bleu Taylor, another senior who exited the game with Brewer, let it sink in as he scanned the spacious arena from the bench.

“It was pretty amazing,” Taylor said. “You come to the Mizzou games, and it’s packed. Obviously tonight it’s not as packed, but just being on that floor, looking around you and seeing this big old gym is so surreal, and getting a win on that court to head to the championship, it’s amazing.

“Being possibly the best team to walk through Canton is crazy.”

Taylor harkened back to the consistent message Tigers coach Dalton Armontrout has had for his team after reaching postseason milestones.

“We’ve won districts the last three years, and every time (Armontrout) tells us, ‘You’re four games away from being state champions, so let’s keep going,’” Taylor said. “Right now, the worst thing that can happen is we get second in the state, but that’s not an option right now. You want to go win the game.”

After accomplishing something no other Canton boys basketball team ever has, the Tigers are ready to make more history on Thursday.

“The story is written, but we’re not done yet,” Armontrout said. “We’ve got one more tomorrow, and we’ll be ready.”