Emporia ? After Saturday’s Class 6A third-place game, you’d think Washburn Rural players would want to rewrite the basketball rule book to include The Nick Devin Law: All players are granted a rearview mirror, which makes known the whereabouts of the Free State senior guard on the court.

Had the Junior Blues had such a device, they better could have prepared for Devin’s five steals in the Firebirds’ 64-51 victory in White Auditorium.

Devin, draped in long hair that covers his eyes, has the appearance of a scrappy, intense, in-your-face guard players welcome as a teammate, but fear as an opponent.

“There was no reason to save anything today,” Devin said of playing his last game for Free State. “Today was a special occasion. I just came out knowing that it was my last game, because I’m probably not going to play in college. I had to give it all and hustle as much as possible.”

Devin, known for his scrappiness all season, even impressed some of his teammates that he has played alongside for years.

“I’ve never seen Nick play like that before,” senior center Christian Ballard said. “I have to give all the credit to Nick. He really led the team on defense.”

Devin also pitched in 10 points, five rebounds and five assists. He was 5-of-6 from the free-throw line.

“We talked about playing the game for our seniors before we went out on the court today,” Free State coach Chuck Law said of Devin, Ballard, Kyle Schreiner and Jamar Reese. “How can you sit there on the bench, see the way he plays, and not be energized by that and not say, ‘I’m going to give every ounce of my fiber to make sure we’re successful.'”

It was evident Devin’s teammates fed off his defensive intensity. Free State (13-12), which improved its defense as the season progressed, forced 21 turnovers against Washburn Rural (15-10), including 14 steals.

Junior forward Weston Wiebe was the most productive offensive option for Free State, scoring 22 points and grabbing seven boards. The way Wiebe glided to the rim and used his agility in the lane produced 11 free throws, of which he converted eight.

Ballard scored 11 points and had eight rebounds. The 6-foot-4, 275-pound center did his best Shaquille O’Neal imitation with 6:40 remaining in the fourth quarter.

After a long scramble for a loose ball, sophomore guard Marcus Spates finally gained possession at half court. Wiebe and Ballard were all alone on the other end. Spates launched a pass to Wiebe, who lightly scooped an underhand pass to Ballard for a two-handed dunk.

“I was going to dunk it as hard as I possibly could,” Ballard said. “It was my last one, and I was going to put it down as hard as possible.”

After Ballard landed, he ran back down the court with his eyes wide-open and displayed a bit of O’Neal’s famed meticulous stride down the floor.

“I have a little bit of Shaq in me,” Ballard said. “I’ve been watching him since he’s been with the (Orlando) Magic. He’s my basketball idol. I try to be like him and dominate like him.”

With the victory, the Free State boys basketball team advanced farther than any other Firebirds team in the 10-year history of the program. Before this season, no other Free State team had won a state playoff game.