With the way the DeKalb offense was playing, coach Mike Reynolds said he figured the Barbs would need to hold Galesburg to about eight points per quarter in the second half.

The defense obliged while the offense, after 16 first-half points, scored 18 in the third quarter alone for a 49-39 win over the Silver Streaks on Monday to reach the semifinals of the 98th annual Chuck Dayton Classic.

“We just know if we lock in on defense, the shots are going to eventually fall,” Straughter said. “That’s what happened in the second half.”

The Barbs (5-5) reached the semifinals late Monday night against Hononegah, with a spot in the championship game on the line. The Barbs have won the tournament the last two years and four of the last six.

“There’s definitely a target on our backs, winning two times in a row,” said Straughter, who finished with six points and a game-high 14 rebounds. “Teams want to come in here and take the trophy from us.”

After the second quarter Monday against the Silver Streaks (6-5), it didn’t look like the Barbs would finish in the top four.

Despite a 19-15 edge on the glass in the first half and a 12-7 edge in turnovers, DeKalb shot 21.4% from the floor and was outscored 16-6 in the quarter. They trailed 24-16 at the break.

After a first half of shooting he called atrocious, Reynolds said he was glad to see the defense step up in the second half.

“As we went into the locker room, I told them we had to hold them to eight points a quarter to get back into the game, and we did that,” Reynolds said. “We can’t give up 16 points in a quarter and let them go on that little mini-run they had at the end of the second quarter.”

The Barbs scored the first six points of the third quarter, then after five quick points by Galesburg, DeKalb scored nine straight for a 31-29 lead.

Sophomore Aaron Ziga started the run with a 3-pointer and ended with a bucket for five of his game-high 13 points. He also had six rebounds and a steal.

“Our defense led to our offense most definitely,” Ziga said. “We take pride in our defense. That’s what we do. That’s what got our offense the lead.”

Myles Newman put the Barbs ahead for good with a 3-pointer at the end of the quarter for a 34-31 lead. The Barbs led 36-35 with 6:25 left but scored 11 of the next 12 to put the game away.

Bryan Miller finished with 11 points, four assists and three steals for DeKalb. Myles Newman, despite shooting 3-for-18, had 10 points.

The Barbs finished the game outscoring the Silver Streaks 14-11 on turnovers with a 41-26 edge on the boards and 10-1 on second-chance points. Reynolds said stops and rebounds are the culture of the program.

“Every defensive possession we have to play like it’s game point,” Reynolds said. “We have to go after the glass like it’s game point. We outrebounded them by 15, and we were not the most athletic team out there. It looked to me like our guys, they were locked in, which is nice to see. We’ve had a couple nights where we weren’t locked in.”