CALDWELL — Third-place games at state are always tough — especially for a team used to playing for championships.

But that was the position two-time defending state champion Genesis Prep found itself in Saturday at Caldwell High, after losing in the semifinals to eventual champion Lighthouse Christian of Twin Falls on Friday.

It was the Jaguars’ first loss at state since the 2016 semifinals.

On Saturday, Genesis Prep overcame a slow start and pulled away to beat the Logos Knights of Moscow 62-39 in the third-place game of the state 1A Division II tournament.

“That first quarter, man, we looked tired,” Genesis Prep coach Marsell Colbert said. “I didn’t know if it was fatigue, or just the hangover from last night. But the second quarter, we started to pick it up a little bit and as the game went on, we started to find our way.”

In a matchup of teams formerly in the Mountain Christian League, Genesis Prep (17-9) trailed Logos (16-7) 14-7 after the first quarter, took the lead for good with an 11-0 run in the second quarter and led 27-22 at the half.

“In that first quarter we were all just tired, and our brains were … it was just a puddle of mud,” Genesis Prep senior forward Joshua Bohannan said. “In the second half we just clicked, and we were able to play how we wanted to play.”

Logos, which got 10 points and seven rebounds from Nate Miller, 10 points from Bennett Schlect and eight points and eight boards from Ben Euhus, pulled to within 32-31 midway through the third. The Jaguars, led by its defensive pressure, eased away with a 9-0 run in the third quarter and a 10-0 spurt in the fourth.

Kon Ajang, the 6-foot-9 senior who is attracting interest from schools big and small — like Washington State, Columbia, Bryant University in Texas, Detroit Mercy and some junior colleges — finished with 15 points, six rebounds and two blocked shots for Genesis Prep.

Junior Scott Mwinuka added 15 points and seven boards, junior Seth Neely 10 points and five rebounds, senior Jacob Schultz nine points and four steals.

Genesis Prep played the tournament without leading scorer and four-year starting guard Jonny Hillman, the Carroll signee who suffered a torn meniscus in his right knee in last week’s District 1 championship.

“I’m just very pleased with these guys, the way they battled this year,” Colbert said. “And the way we responded after losing our leader (Hillman). These guys rallied around Jonny, and they banded together, and accomplished what they set out to accomplish. Very proud of these guys.”

Genesis Prep has now brought home a trophy from state each of the four years the program has been sanctioned by the Idaho High School Activities Association. The Jaguars took third at state in 2016.

“It was a little disappointing yesterday,” Bohannan said. “Not what we expected to happen obviously, but I think we reconvened, and realized that everything happens for a reason, and you’ve just got to keep playing.”

Genesis Prep 7 20 14 21 — 62

Logos 14 8 9 8 — 39

GENESIS PREP — Ajang 15, Peterson 4, Elonen 0, Mwinuka 15, Schultz 9, Neely 10, Gonzales 7, Bohannan 2. Totals 23-54 12-21 62.

LOGOS — Nuttbrock 0, Casebolt 0, Blum 6, Schlect 10, Miller 10, Euhus 8, Wolson 0, Minudri 5, Schneider 0. Totals 14-48 5-11 39.