Triton raises its 12th sectional championship trophy after beating Oregon-Davis, 55-36, Saturday night at the Triton Boys Basketball Sectional. (Photos by Mike Deak)

BOURBON – Triton boys basketball head coach Jason Groves swears he didn’t talk about last year’s sectional final loss against Oregon-Davis to his club this week. About everyone else in blue was well-aware retribution was the only remedy Saturday night. And the Trojans will party into the night back atop the Class 1-A Sectional 51 throne after dismissing O-D, 55-36, at the Trojan Trench.

Triton used a 10-2 run to open the fourth quarter, breaking away from an Oregon-Davis team that just kept finding a way to stick around. But the presence of Grant Johnson inside, who had played little factor until the fourth, made all the difference. Johnson scored seven of the 10 points during the run, pulling down a key offensive rebound during the stretch, helping put Triton up 44-31.

Masen Yeo led Triton with 19 points.

“I didn’t even mention last year to them,” Groves said. “We are a new team, they are a new team. This is a totally new year. We are a different team and we are playing well. Last year is in the past. That’s nothing. Let’s focus on this year and get it done. And our kids did.”

Johnson finished with 12 points and seven boards – five offensive – as part of the big three for the Trojans. Jordan Anderson hit three bombs and finished with 11 points, a three to end the half capped a 9-0 Trojan run to the break.

Masen Yeo harkened back to the days when his brother, Clay, was guiding the Trojans to sectional titles. With Clay in the house, little brother dropped in 19 points and was red hot out of the gate, scoring 14 in the first half. Yeo also added five assists, four rebounds, two steals and two blocks in a full plate.

Dalton Bailey, who didn’t factor into the scoresheets much during the season, gave Triton a boost with four points, three boards, two assists and a steal.

O-D, which shocked the sectional last March in the finals against Triton, won its first title in eight years. Saturday night had all the makings of another shocker in B-town, as the Bobcats hit six three-pointers in the first half and shot 60 percent overall in the half.

But that mojo disappeared quickly as O-D hit for just 28 percent in the final 16 minutes. Defensively, the Bobcats held Triton to just four points in the third quarter and trailed by just seven, but couldn’t find its touch.

Jonathon Clark led the Bobcats (10-14) with 20 points, but only three other players in black jerseys managed to score. John Messer had seven points, Braxton Moorefield with six points and Trevor Risner with three points.

“Part of it was (Oregon-Davis) came to play,” Groves said. “Give credit to their kids and their coaching staff. They did a nice job. But I liked how our kids responded, I felt good when we had a seven-point lead at halftime when they shot that well.

“We had to make a few minor adjustments, and we did. Our kids handled it and I thought our kids played really well.”

Triton (18-7) wins its 12th sectional title, the first since 2013 which was the last of a six-year sectional title run and also when Clay Yeo and company went to the state finals. The Trojans will host the regional next Saturday, where it will open at 10 a.m. against Gary 21st Century (18-6), which knocked off Morgan Township 54-48 at the Morgan Township Sectional. In the noon regional matchup, Fort Wayne Blackhawk (16-11) will meet South Newton (23-2). The title game will be played at 8 p.m.