BEMIDJI – The Perham boys basketball team got one of its biggest wins of the season against Class AAAA's Bemidji on Thursday night.
The Yellowjackets (14-10) knocked off the Lumberjacks (15-7) 66-59 on the road behind a balanced scoring effort. Senior Chas Melvin and junior Soren Anderson each had 16 points to lead Perham, while juniors Micah Thompson and Alex Ohm each had 11.
Perham shot 59% from the field on 23-of-29 attempts. The Yellowjackets were lights out from three-point range, making 10-of-20 threes. Anderson and Ohm each hit three. Thompson also had 12 rebounds to complete the double-double.
Bemidji's Gavin Luksik had a game-high 25 points. He also collected 11 rebounds for a double-double. Sam Wilson put up 19 points, while Isaac Severts had 10.
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Section 8-2A playoffs
Perham's win over Bemidji was enough to avoid the QRF tiebreaker margin, according to Minnesota-Scores. The Yellowjackets are the No. 3 seed heading into the Section 8-2A playoffs starting Thursday night at The Hive. Perham will take on No. 14 Crookston (5-21) in the opening round of the playoffs.
Perham had a higher QRF rating than second-seeded Pelican Rapids (20-5), but couldn't beat out the Vikings for the No. 2 seed. The tiebreaker margin takes the average QRF rating between each team in the class and multiplies it by 7%. If two teams have QRF scores within that margin, the higher seed will be determined by head-to-head matchups. Pelican Rapids beat Perham twice this season.
This is also significant for Perham's potential second-round matchup. Warroad (21-5) leaped Hawley (16-7) for the fifth seed despite having a lower QRF score. Warroad had a better overall winning percentage, which could set up the rubber match between the Nuggets and the Yellowjackets on Saturday night. Hawley and Perham have each beaten each other by 13 points this season.
Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton (19-5) didn't have to worry about losing the top seed in the field. The Rebels host Roseau (5-21) before an impending game against either Barnesville (14-10) or Park Rapids (15-9). Pelican Rapids will look to take care of business against Frazee (4-20) before a matchup against No. 7 Fergus Falls (9-17) or No. 10 East Grand Forks (14-12).
Thief River Falls (18-6) received the No. 4 seed after beating Perham in the final week of the regular season. The Prowlers host Red Lake (9-15) before a rivalry game against Warroad in the second round.
The high seeds host each of the first two rounds of the tournament on Thursday and Saturday. The semifinals kick off on Tuesday from Detroit Lakes at Lakeshirts Fieldhouse.
PERHAM 34 32 - 66
BEMIDJI 30 29 - 59
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TEAM TOTALS- PERHAM- 23-39 FGA, 13-19 2PA, 10-20 3PA, 10-18 FTA, 29 rebounds, 17 assists, 1 block, 9 turnovers; BEMIDJI- 26-59 FGA, 18-36 2PA, 5-22 3PA, 8-9 FTA, 22 rebounds
PERHAM- Micah Thompson 11 points, 12 rebounds, 4 assists; Chas Melvin 16 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists, Soren Anderson 16 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists; Marcus Belka 4 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist; Alex Ohm 11 points, 1 rebound, 3 assists; Jacob Daniels 9 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist
BEMIDJI SCORING- Sam Wilson, 19, Isaac Severts 10, Gavin Luksik 25, Khai Branham 5
