MANKATO — A double-digit first-half lead wasn’t able to translate into a berth in the state tournament for the United South Central boys’ basketball team.

The Rebels built a 24-12 lead and held a 30-20 halftime advantage but were outscored 39-23 in the second half Friday during a 59-53 loss against Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City in the Section 2A finals in Bresnan Arena at Minnesota State University, Mankato.

“I was proud of the kids’ effort tonight,” said USC coach Rob Stevermer. “They played their guts out. I can’t say enough about their effort. They gave their very best.”

The Rebels (20-8, 8-4 Gopher) built their lead with a series of 3-pointers and strong defense in the first half. Grant Becher buried a trey to give USC a 12-8 lead, and the Rebels took a 24-12 lead after back-to-back 3-pointers by Trevor Stencel.

Ryan Kloos provided energy off the bench with nine of his 11 points in the first half.

“We had a little boost there, but the tides turned in the second half and we weren’t able to make some of those same shots,” Stevermer said.

ACGC (21-9, 10-5 West Central) nearly doubled its scoring from 20 points in the first half to 39 in the second.

“We played really well defensively in the first half, but for whatever reason they did a little better job penetrating on us and making their free throws in the second half,” Stevermer said.

USC was 10-of-15 at the charity stripe; ACGC was 19-of-23.

With 9:12 left in regulation, the Falcons tied the game at 41. They took their first lead of the second half on pair of free throws by Alex Hendricks.

ACGC extended its lead to four points, but a 3-point play by Nate Pederson tied the game at 45.

With 1:30 left, the game was tied at 53.

The Falcons took a two-point lead with 55.8 seconds left on a pair of free throws. USC came away empty on the ensuing possession after grabbing three offensive boards.

The Rebels had one last chance to tie the game with a three-point deficit and 15.9 seconds left, but Luke Trio’s 3-pointer was off the mark.

Pederson led the Rebels with 13 points, Trio added eight points and a team-high eight rebounds and Stencel scored six points.

Six seniors played their last basketball game for USC: Pederson, Trio, Dallas Olson, Brennan Magnuson, Cody Latusek and Riley Kloos.

“It’s been a joy coaching them the last four years, and I’ve been watching them play since they were very young,” Stevermer said. “They’ve got a heart and spirit that few senior groups have had that have come through our program.”

USC qualified for the section finals for the second straight season and faced the same opponent.

Last year, ACGC (21-8, 9-6 West Central) defeated USC (23-5, 11-3 Gopher) 69-61 but lost in the first round of the Class A state tournament 71-63 against Rushford-Peterson (31-2, 19-1 Three Rivers), the defending state runner-up.