A 3-pointer by Denver Duckwitz gave Altamont a 5-2 lead 2½ minutes into the contest. But Aaron Webb responded with a three of his own 15 seconds later and the Bulldogs took off, closing the first quarter on a 22-3 run that included the final 10 points.

Jack Hoene and Webb both connected from long range, Connor Walk hit a short jumper and Hoene scored again, giving the Bulldogs a 24-8 advantage after the first eight minutes. St. Anthony made 9 of its 12 shots in the period, including all four from behind the arc.

A dunk by Jaccob Dust expanded the lead to 22 points, 32-10, but the Indians trimmed the margin to 16 points, 35-19, by intermission.

It was 39-21 when the Bulldogs went through a cold shooting stretch in the third period and Altamont was able to cut into the lead. St. Anthony missed 10 straight hosts, plus turned the ball over once, and the Indians got baskets from Noah Klimpel, Kaden Eirhart and Noah Teasley to make it 39-27. Altamont had two chances to get even closer, but was unable to score.

“If they got it to 10 points, I was going to call a timeout,” Rincker said. “We were missing shots, but they were not scoring on every trip. I felt if we could make a couple shots, we’d get rolling again.”

And that’s exactly what happened.

Webb hit a jumper that sparked an 8-2 run that include a basket at the buzzer by Walk to put St. Anthony up by 18 points, 47-29. The Bulldogs led by as many as 25 in the final quarter before settling for the 23-point victory.

One of the keys for St. Anthony was holding Altamont’s two leading scorers to 12 total points.

“Aidan (Jahraus) and Kaden (Eirhart) are good players,” Rincker said. “Our goal was to put them in situations where they were always shooting over somebody 6’5” or taller. For the most part, we did that.

“Logan (Antrim) guarded Aiden and Kaden (Fearday) guarded Kaden,” Rincker added. “Logan isn’t 6’5”, but he’s got long arms and he kept himself between Aiden and the basket. And Kaden (Fearday) played very good defense and made it tough on Kaden to score.”

Another key was the play of Jack Elder off the bench. He scored 10 points and pulled down seven rebounds.

“Oftentimes, Jack is the most athletic kid on the floor when he’s in the game,” Rincker said. “When he puts it all together and makes shots, he gives us another dimension. We don’t miss a beat. He’s a gifted athlete that is excelling in his role. I have a lot of confidence in Jack right now.”

Dust also had a monster game. The 6’7” center finished with a double-double, scoring 16 points and grabbing 15 rebounds. The Bulldogs shot 41 percent for the game, connecting on 24-of-58 attempts. They were 4-of-14 from three-point range and 7-of-14 from the foul line.

The win not only made Senior Night successful, it also clinched the National Trail Conference title for the second year in a row. In fact, the Bulldogs have dominated the NTC the past two seasons. Between the regular season and conference tournament, they are 22-0.

“This is the first group I’ve coached that won both the regular season and conference tournament in back-to-back seasons,” Rincker noted. “That’s a cool accomplishment; something they can take pride in.”

The Bulldogs, now 24-3 and ranked No. 5 in the Class 1A poll, will end their regular season on the road Friday night at Casey-Westfield. The Warriors are another very good 1A team and will come into the game with a 21-6 record.

St. Anthony will then open postseason play as the top seed in the Bridgeport (Red Hill) Regional. The Bulldogs will play Wednesday at 6 p.m. against either Cisne or Red Hill.