Ben Galemmo take a bow. You have lifted your Moeller Crusaders to the regional finals.

The sophomore sharpshooter drilled a three-pointer with 1:02 left in the game to give Moeller its first lead since midway through the first quarter as the Crusaders advanced to the OHSAA Boys’ Division I regional finals with the 54-51 comeback victory over Princeton at the Cintas Center.

He finished with 12 points, all in the second half, to boost the Crusaders. It was a much needed for Moeller as Griffin McKenzie and Charlie Byers combined for just 17 points on 4-of-25 shooting.

With the Princeton student section was taunting its foes across the court, the Vikings on the court were rolling and it appeared Princeton was ready to punch its ticket to the regional finals.

Then, Galemmo drilled a three-pointer, Ohio State signee Jordan Sibert picked up fouls three and four, and the momentum had shifted late in the third quarter. By the two-minute mark of the final quarter, Princeton’s 16-point lead had completely evaporated.

“There is no doubt that his fourth foul, momentum-wise, was one of the keys to the game,” said Kremer. “We started being a little more patient, moving the ball around a little bit and got the ball around to Ben.”

Princeton head coach Josh Andrews, even with a 10-point lead, felt it was necessary to have Sibert on the court.

“If you gonna play, we have to have the best player on the court,” said Andrews. “We needed him in the game. He is a three-year varsity player. We needed his presence and decision-making.”

Part of the reason Moeller was able to climb back in the game was the Vikings’ inability to make free throws. Princeton, at one points, missed seven straight free throws during the Crusaders comeback. They connected just 50 percent (9-of-18) from the line in the second half. In addition to the free throw woes, the Vikings missed all eight of their three-pointers in the last two quarter.

“It hurt,” Andrews said of the missed free throws. “If you just shoot a decent percentage from the line, we win the game. If we make a couple, it stifles the run.”

Sibert, after scoring 10 points in the first half, rounded his prep career with 20 points on 2-of-10 shooting.

The win completed one of the better Moeller comebacks under Kremer. The Crusader coach points to two victories during the state title run of 1999. They trailed Beavercreek by 13 in the regional final and turned back a Butler team after trailing by 12 in the final three minutes of the same season.

“All state runs have a major comeback,” said Kremer.

Princeton finishes at 19-5, while Moeller improves to 20-4 and awaits the winner of the LaSalle/St. Xavier game for an all-GCL regional final.

“Historically, our league has proved to be a tough out,” said Kremer. “I guess it’s the pride of an all-boy Catholic school.”