SYRACUSE – When the spotlight was turned on, NorthWood rose to the occasion.

The No. 5 Panthers, using big nights from its senior superstars, broke down a game West Noble team, 75-61, to win the Wawasee Boys Basketball Class 3-A Sectional.

The senior trio of Zach Zurcher, Jonathan Wilkinson and Will Stueve did the heavy lifting for NorthWood, scoring 62 of the Panther’s point total. Zurcher, who has been battling an injured wrist the entire sectional tournament, didn’t act like an injured player. The dynamic senior forward scored 13 of his game-high 23 points in the first half while Wilkinson was right behind with 21 points. Stueve was also a pain in West Noble’s side with 18 points to go with 10 rebounds and five blocked shots.

Senior Tanner Farmwald added 11 points for the Panthers (21-2), which earned the fifth sectional title in program history and first since 2012. Sophomore Braxton Linville had nine assists for the champions.

NorthWood will take on Fort Wayne Dwenger (15-8) in the first game of the Blackford Regional this Saturday. Muncie Central (10-11) and Norwell (19-6) play in the second semifinal.

West Noble (18-6), which was looking for its first sectional title, had four players in double figures in scoring, but just couldn’t keep up with the Panthers. All-purpose player Drew Schermerhorn led the Chargers with 18 points. Waylon Richardson added 12, Phil Miller 11 and Brandon Moser 10 in the losing effort.

West Noble kept the game close, trailing by just eight entering the fourth quarter, but NorthWood hit 13 of 14 free throw attempts in the final quarter and 17 of 21 for the game.

The Panthers, who have set a single-season record for victories this year, beat West Noble 71-54 during the regular season.

NorthWood and Dwenger play at 10 a.m. Saturday followed by the Muncie-Norwell matchup. The championship at Blackford is slated for 8 p.m. Saturday night.