Gary 21st Century’s Eugene German scored 40 points to lead the Cougars to an 82-66 win over South Newton Saturday night.

BOURBON – History was going to be made one way or another Saturday night in the Trojan Trench. Gary 21st Century said ‘why not us?’ The Cougars claimed its first regional title in just its fifth year of IHSAA eligibility as the charter school took care of South Newton, 82-66, in the Class 1-A Triton Boys Basketball Regional.

South Newton kept step for step with Century most of the first three quarters, but ran out of gas while the Cougars just kept on scoring. A 39-36 halftime lead for Century stretched out to a nine-point lead after three, and the Rebels had no answer for the scoring dynamos from Lake County.

Eugene German was the boss Saturday night, scoring 40 points on 15-27 shooting from the floor. German, coming into the tournament averaging 33.3 points per game, scored 64 points in the regional, but also had 12 assists on the day, five coming in the nightcap.

DeAndre Gholston had 10 points and eight rebounds while Tyree Booker added 12 points and seven boards for the Cougars (20-6), which will meet Liberty Christian (24-4) in the semi-state, which won its third straight regional title after dropping Lafayette Central Catholic, 74-71, in overtime in the Frankfort Regional.

Jared Hammel scored 19 points and pulled down 11 rebounds for South Newton, which finishes its finest season in school history with a 24-3 mark. Jay Hammel added 17 points and Skylar Sanders had 14 points for the Rebels, which was seeking its first-ever regional title.