The Warsaw boys basketball team beat Elkhart Central 38-35 Saturday night to win the Elkhart Sectional. The No. 5 Tigers will face South Bend Riley in the Michigan City Regional on March 12.

ELKHART – Fearless was the rallying cry this week for the Warsaw boys basketball team.

That motto ended up fitting the Tigers like that of a true champion Saturday night.

Kyle Mangas proved to be the most fearless of them all too as he etched his name into program lore when it comes to Hoosier Hysteria with the game winner in true March Madness style.

Mangas hit a tough driving layup through traffic and a subsequent free throw with just 1.6 seconds to play as the No. 5 Tigers topped Elkhart Central 38-35 in a true classic in the Elkhart Sectional final at North Side Gym.

Mangas, for good measure, then intercepted a long desperation inbounds pass on the final play of the thrilling finale at a venue that has seen its fair share of historic state tournament games.

Mangas took an inbounds pass with 6.1 seconds left on the clock and drove the length of the floor. The junior guard sliced between a pair of Central defenders and then kissed the winner off the glass while being fouled on the play. The tough shot was the lone basket of the final period for the Tigers, who hit 10-11 free throws in the fourth quarter.

“I just drove it as hard as I could, saw an opening and took it,” said Mangas of his heroic shot. “I knew that I had plenty of time. I’m always looking to attack and I just saw it and took it. I’m pretty good at making those kinds of shots.”

The Tigers had to overcome a game Central squad. The Blue Blazers, who had lost 49-35 at Warsaw back on Jan. 30  tied the game 35-35 on a 3-pointer by Langston Johnson with 6.4 seconds to play.

Paul Marandet was clutch with a game-high 15 points for the Tigers.

Warsaw had plenty of heroes down the stretch.

Senior star Paul Marandet hit six clutch free throws in the fourth quarter, including a pair with 15.1 ticks left to make it 35-32

“I knew they were going in,” said Marandet of his big time free throws. “I shot extra free throws today after practice. I just told myself soft and smooth. This is so special.”

Marandet finished 7-7 from the line, including 6-6 in the final stanza. He scored a game-high 15 points for the champions.

Senior Riley Rhoades hit a pair of huge free throws with 1:30 to play to give his team a 31-29 lead.

“This feels great,” said Rhoades, who had to overcome a knee injury suffered during football season to return to the hardwood. “All of our hard work paid off. It means a lot to me to win this sectional. We had confidence and faith in each other. I just tried to block everything out on the free throws.”

The sectional title was the fifth for Warsaw coach Doug Ogle in his 14 years. The Tigers last won the sectional in 2013, but were upset last year in the first round by Concord.

“I’m just happy for our players, the community and Tiger Nation,” said Ogle. “It’s been a while since North Side Gym has been this full for a sectional final. That’s a credit to our fans and to the Elkhart Central fans.

“It was one heck of a play that Kyle Mangas made. He’s just fearless. True grit. I had a good feeling with six seconds left. Kyle is just so aggressive and so hard to corral. If he’s not a Core Six Junior All-Star, I don’t know what’s going on.

“It was a heck of a game. A very well played game. Central was very patient and they played good on defense and good on offense. They had hit 16-21 shots from three in their first two sectional wins. Our defense held them to 3-6 tonight. That was big.

“Paul hit big free throws. Riley hit big free throws. Our guys are just tough mentally. They defended again like they have all season for us.”

Jeremy David was strong inside for the champions.

The game was tied at 7-7 after the opening period. Warsaw used a 6-0 run, capped by a steal and a thunder dunk by Mangas, to lead 22-15 at halftime. Marandet and Mangas each had nine points, with all of Mangas’ scoring coming in the second quarter.

The Tigers led 26-22 after the third period after being outscored 7-4 in the frame. Central tied the game at 26-26 with 4:55 to play and took their first lead since 2-0 on a trey by Adam DeShone with 3:18 left that made it 29-28.  Mangas then hit 1-2 free throws with 2:43 remaining to tie it at 29-29.

Rhoades and Jeremy David each had four points for the Tigers, while senior Evan Schmidt had two.

Warsaw shot 13-23 from the field, including 3-7 in the second half. The Tigers were 0-3 from distance, but 12-14 from the line with seven turnovers and a 15-9 rebounding edge.

Junior Cornell Conner led Central with 11 points. Junior Adonis Brown and Langston Johnson, one of six seniors for coach Randy DeShone’s team, each scored six for the Blue Blazers, who finish at 16-8 (their best win total in 13 years).

Central shot 13-23 from the field, including 3-6 from distance. The Blue Blazers were 6-9 from the line and had 10 turnovers.

The Tigers will take a 23-1 mark into the Michigan City Regional next Saturday. Warsaw will face South Bend Riley (22-5) in the first regional semifinal game at 10 a.m. (Michigan City time). Riley topped Plymouth 60-54 Saturday night to win the Plymouth Sectional.

The second regional semifinal pits East Chicago Central (18-5) versus Crown Point (18-8).  The regional final is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. The regional champion will play in the semistate at either Huntington North or Lafayette Jefferson on March 19.

Kyle Mangas hit the game winner for Warsaw Saturday night.