Baldwin ? Baldwin High junior Joe Gipp desperately wanted to cap a big comeback with a game-winning shot.

Gipp got what he wanted when he scored on a layup with 3.5 seconds to give the Bulldogs a 55-54 boys basketball victory over Eudora.

First-year Baldwin coach Jeff Haas said a lot of things were riding on Gipp’s game-winning shot.

“I was proud of Joe,” Haas said. “He showed a lot of guts and poise at the end of the game. We needed this win for the team’s growth and a chance to play at home for sub-state.”

Gipp, who made four three-pointers and scored 13 of his 16 points in the second half, wasn’t even expected to play on Friday night. He injured his left eye during practice on Thursday and spent the evening at Lawrence Memorial Hospital.

“It was a good feeling because I missed one against Ottawa when we were down 22 and against Osage City,” Gipp said. “As a team, we did what we needed to do.”

Both teams experienced a sluggish start because of the physical nature of the game.

Eudora senior guard Lear Bowling, who scored 17 points and three steals, had one of his best shooting games of the season, while Baldwin sophomore point guard Andy Hannon, who scored a game-high 23 points, drained two of his four three-pointers in the first quarter.

When Haas pulled Hannon at the beginning of the second quarter, the Cardinals went on a 9-0 run. EHS sophomore point guard Tyler Cleveland found junior center Kaleb Niedens, who knocked down four three-pointers.

Trailing 31-19 at halftime, the Bulldogs put together an 8-0 run of their own to begin the third quarter.

Baldwin looked to its bench and its outside shooters to complete the comeback.

Baldwin junior Brian Lauridsen came in for the first time and scored two straight hoops, bringing the Bulldogs within four, 46-42.

The Cardinals broke Baldwin’s full-court press as Bowling and senior Zac Tyler hiked the Eudora lead to eight, 50-42.

Down four with 24.6 seconds remaining, the Bulldogs fouled Tyler, who had missed two foul shots earlier in the quarter. This time, Tyler calmly sank both shots.

Hannon nailed a three-pointer at the other end with 12 seconds left to make it 54-53, and the Bulldogs fouled Bowling, Eudora’s best foul shooter.

Bowling missed the one-and-one shot and Baldwin called a timeout with nine seconds left to call the final play  Hannon’s pass to Gipp for the game-winning layup.

“I thought we had a good effort tonight,” EHS coach Scott Stein said. “They made threes when they needed to and we didn’t finish our free throws.”

Baldwin 55, Eudora 54

Baldwin 10 9 16 20 Â 55

Eudora 13 18 11 12 Â 54

Baldwin (8-8) Â Eric Black 4, Eric Brown 2, Joe Gipp 16, Andy Hannon 23, Brian Lauridsen 4, Micah Mason 2, Hugh Murphy 4

Eudora (9-6) Â Lear Bowling 17, Tyler Cleveland 4, Wes Hinman 4, Kaleb Niedens 16, Tommy Stein 5, Zac Tyler 8