Friday, February 27, 2009

By Isaac Kuhlman

  The Orleans Arena hosted the 2009 Nevada State 4A High School Basketball Championships on Saturday, and the screaming fans would be on the edge of their seat until the end of the game for both the Boys and the Girls' games because both games were decided in the final seconds at the free throw line.

  In the early game, the Centennial Bulldogs took on the Bishop Gorman Gaels for the Girl's State Championship. The Bulldogs led almost the entire game, but the Gaels did not give up. The Bulldogs also were never really able to pull away at any given point in the game, so the Gaels were always in the rear-view mirror. With the clock showing 20.3 seconds left in the 4th quarter, Gorman pulled ahead with a layup by Chelsie Pitt. The score was now 58-57 with Gorman looking to be in control of the game. This immediately sparked the Bulldogs standout, Alexis Byrd, to take the in-bound pass and run down the court, but, whether she expected it or not, the Bulldogs called a timeout.

  The game plan seemed simple; get the ball as close to the rim as possible, and make a two pointer to win the game. The plan almost worked as easy as it was laid out. However, a couple of missed opportunities from short range, and a subsequent loose-ball scramble gave the Centennial fans plenty of anxiety. When the ball found its way over to the hands of Byrd again, she took the baseline and threw up a shot. It went in with less than a second left, but it was called off, because she was fouled on the floor.

  So, it all came down to the double-bonus free throws. Byrd hit the first to tie the game at 58-58. The suspense mounted and the pressure grew, but the junior was not fazed and drained the second shot as well. This put the Bulldogs up 59-58, and, with only 0.5 seconds left on the clock, Bishop Gorman's Aaryn Ellenberg threw up about an 80-foot shot that had the distance but not the accuracy.

  The championship is the first for the Bulldogs since 2005 when they amassed their 4th straight state title. This also capped off Bishop Gorman's run of 3 consecutive championship victories.

  In the Boy's final game, the scenario seemed very familiar. Almost all the same drama coincided in the Palo Verde Panthers against the Bishop Gorman Gaels game for the Boy's title. The Gaels were down the entire game, and the Panthers looked like they were getting ready to put the title in their pocket. However, with a little over two minutes to go (and the Panthers leading by 6), Czar Robotham cut the lead to just three by hitting a big shot from beyond the arc.

  After a turnover and trading baskets, the Panthers were up 55-52. The Gaels went to Kylel Coleman who hit a vital game-tying 3-point shot with 1:12 left on the clock. Palo Verde then ran the clock for most of the last minute calling two timeouts to make sure they had the right play.

  The Panthers looked to their senior guard, D.J. Stennis, to take the final shot. He drove to the basket with about 8 seconds left, and Bishop Gorman's Alex Turner blocked his layup attempt. The ball was picked up by the Gaels' guard, John Loyd. The game was still tied, which is why it was so weird to see the Panthers' Bryce Cotton foul Loyd with only 1.8 seconds left when he was in the backcourt still.

  The result was a 1-and-1 situation where Loyd only needed to make the first shot to win the game. That is exactly what he did. Loyd made the first, and missed the second which forced Palo Verde to throw up a Hail-Mary, buzzer beater, but to no avail.

  The perennial favorites, Bishop Gorman, won their first state championship since 2005. So, this meant that the Girl's and Boy's winner in 2005 was the same as 2009. This proves that leap year is not the only thing that happens every four years.