Blake Foster’s fullcourt shot sparks Bureau Valley to win at Hall

Blake Foster could try 100 times and he’d miss it.

This time he made it.

The Bureau Valley senior flung the ball discus style from under the basket at one end of the court to the other, hitting nothing but net for a stunning 3-point basket to beat the third-quarter buzzer.

That improbable shot brought the Storm within 43-40. It helped spark the Storm to a 10-0 run in the third quarter on the way to a 55-53 win over the Bureau County rival Red Devils Friday in Spring Valley.

“I wasn’t looking at the hoop. I just grabbed it, prayed and chucked it and it went in. It’s crazy,” Foster said. “I think it definitely (sparked us). We were down (6) or something.”

“We got down by 10 in the third quarter. We showed some resilience to fight back. That was a momentum play,” BV coach Jason Marquis said. “It matters, too. You win by two points and you get that shot. You get those three points as did the three (by Hall) at the end of the second quarter. We were fortunate.”

The game had been a dual of Hall senior Braden Curran and Bureau Valley frosh Carson Gruber up to that point.

Curran poured in 26 points through the first three quarters with his athleticism, 14 points in the third quarter alone.

Gruber used his marksmanship, burying five 3-pointers in the first half and three more in the third quarter in a 27-point effort. Gruber has found a liking to the Hall gym having poured in 37 points against Princeton in the Colmone Classic.

“He shot like that as a third grader. We’re not surprised that he can shoot the ball,” Marquis said.

“If Braden and (Gruber) played 1-on-1, I don’t know who would win because they both had a ton of points,” Hall coach Mike Filippini said. “(Gruber) likes this gym. He did it to Princeton and he did it to us.”

Curran tried his best to will the Red Devils to a senior night win. He scored all but two of Hall’s points in a 12-0 third quarter run that carried the Red Devils to a 41-31 lead with under 2 minutes left in the third.

Hall's Gage Olson blocks Bureau Valley's Carson Gruber's shot on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026 at Hall High School. (Scott Anderson)

Gruber buried a 3-pointer from the left corner and on the next possession dialed deep from the right wing to make it 41-37 at the 1 minute mark.

Curran scored again in the post, but Foster stole the show with highlight reel shot.

“That won them the game. There’s not a whole lot you can do about that,” Hall coach Mike Filippini said. “83 and a half foot shot one-hand chuck that went in that could only go in against us.

Greyson Bickett hit a trey to give Hall a 48-44 edge early in the fourth quarter.

Gruber scored on a drive to trigger the Storm’s 10-0 run. Dakari Martin scored in the post to tie the game at 40 with 4:20 left. Carter Chhim drove the lane for two and added 1-2 free throws, Logan Philhower scored on the break and Gruber hit 1-2 free throws to put the Storm up 54-48.

Bickett (11 points) broke the Red Devils ice with a pair of free throws answered by one charity toss by Chhim to give BV a 55-50 edge.

Noah Plym drained a 3-pointer with 32.5 remaining, but the Red Devils drew no closer with Curran shooting long for the win at the buzzer.

Bureau Valley's Carson Gruber does a reverse layup to score over Hall's Gage Olson on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026 at Hall High School. (Scott Anderson)

Hall jumped out to a 10-2 lead before Gruber ended the first quarter with pair of 3s. He hit three more treys to open up the second quarter for a 17-10 BV edge and Drake Taylor knocked down one of his own for a 26-20 late BV lead.

Plym sent Hall to a 27-26 halftime when he beat the buzzer with a 3-pointer on an inbounds play with 0.7 on the clock.

Foster said the Storm (4-13) need to carry this momentum into their next game Friday at home vs Monmouth United.

“We want to go on a streak here. Friday is big conference game. We’re going to have to come to play,” he said.

Filippini said the Red Devils have to regroup and come ready to play Friday at Erie-Prophetstown.

“We told the kids, it sucks to lose. We’ve lost five in a row. You’ve got to keep fighting, keep your head up and be ready to practice tomorrow. You’ve got to find a way to win,” he said. “Our effort is there. All we ever ask of them is they play as hard as they can. We’re definitely doing that. We’re 1 or 2 breaks from breaking through and getting a win, but we’re the ones that have to make them.”

1 of 23

Bureau Valley's Blake Foster reacts after hitting a buzzer-beater full-court shot against Hall on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026 at Hall High School. (Scott Anderson)