SG Lucciano Gamiz hit a 10-foot jumper from the right baseline with 10 seconds left to lift Antelope Valley to an improbable 85-83 win over #4 Chaffey Saturday evening in the championship game of the 2012 Cougar Holiday Classic at College of the Canyons in Santa Clarita.
With the score tied at 83, Gamiz, who was 0-for-8 in the game to that point, took a pass from tourney MVP PG Michaelyn Scott, dribbled once and calmly swished the shot that sent Antelope Valley (8-5) past its Foothill League rivals and to its second straight championship of the COC tournament.
It all seemed so improbable - not just that Gamiz would choose the key moment of the game to break his cold spell in the frosty gym - but Chaffey (11-4) entered the game with a 7-game win streak and had won those games by an average of more than 30 points per game. And Gamiz' jumper gave AVC just its third lead of the game.
Chaffey started out looking like it had over the last seven games, jumping out to a 28-18 lead after just 7:12. A 3-pointer by SG Justin Long had given the Panthers a 14-7 lead. A 3-pointer by SG Kenny Morgan made it 26-18, at which point Morgan was 4-for-4 from the floor. Then when Morgan finally missed, PF Ryan Nitz was there to score on the putback to make it 28-18.
But after a timeout, Antelope Valley seemed to adjust to the pace. The Marauders quickly cut the deficit to three points at 28-25. A dunk by SF Julius Bilbrew made it a one-point game at 32-31 with just under five minutes left in the half. And a 3-pointer by PF Daviyon Draper gave AVC a 36-34 lead with 3:51 left in the first half.
That AVC lead lasted just a few moments, however, as Long answered with a 3-pointer to put Chaffey back in front. The Panthers held a narrow lead the rest of the half, which ended with Chaffey holding a 47-44 lead.
When the second half began, Chaffey began to lengthen its lead again, pushing the advantage to 11 points at 67-56 after a baseline jumper by PG Sango Niang with just over 13 minutes left. AVC cut the deficit back to five points at 67-62, but then Ctr Dwan Caldwell went to the bench with his 4th foul. And Chaffey pushed its lead back to 11 points after a steal & lay-up by Long that made it 74-63.
AVC battled back, however, getting 3-point plays by SF Larry Slaughter and PF Zachary Hollis to make it 74-69. Then a steal & lay-up by Scott made it 74-71 with 7:55 left. A putback basket by Ctr John Washington brought the Marauders within a point at 82-81 as the clock wound down.
Ctr Vadal Faniel scored on a third-chance putback at the one-minute mark to give AVC its first lead of the second half at 83-82. Morgan drew a foul for Chaffey with 43 seconds left and made one free throw to tie the score, but missed the second to keep it tied.
Then came Gamiz' game-winning 3-pointer, which came on Scott's 10th assist of the game. Chaffey still had a chance to tie or re-take the lead, but Nitz' off-balance jumper in the final seconds was not close. Faniel snatched the rebound out of the air and secured both the ball and the win for AVC.
Scott finished with 17 pts and 10 asts to earn tourney MVP honors for Antelope Valley. Caldwell had 15 pts and 9 rebs despite the foul trouble, but Faniel came up big off the bench and also scored 15 pts. Draper had 9 pts, 6 rebs and 6 asts. All ten AVC players who got into the game had at least one field goal with Gamiz joining the parade at the last possible moment but also at the most important point of the game.
For Chaffey, Long led all scorers with his 21 pts, including 4 threes, and added 4 asts and 2 steals. Morgan had 20 pts, including 3 threes, and 7 rebs. Ctr Anthony Fitzpatrick had a very strong game with 15 pts and a game-high 11 rebs. Niang had 9 pts and a team-high 6 asts, and joined Morgan on the all-tournament team.
box score
2012 Cougar Holiday Classic
Saturday, December 29th @ College of the Canyons, Santa Clarita
Championship Game - 5 pm
Antelope Valley Marauders 85:
10-Julius Bilbrew, SF - 3/4 fg, 1/1 ft, 2 reb, 2 ast, 5 pf, 7 pts
11-Daviyon Draper, PF - 3/11 fg, 1/2 ft, 6 reb, 6 ast, 2 pf, 9 pts
12-Michaelyn Scott, PG - 5/15 fg, 7/8 ft, 6 reb, 10 ast, 1 stl, 17 pts
20-Lucciano Gamiz, SG - 1/9 fg, 1 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl, 3 pf, 2 pts
42-Dwan Caldwell, C - 7/11 fg, 1/2 ft, 9 reb, 4 pf, 15 pts
2-Terrance Berry, G - 2/4 fg, 3 reb, 1 ast, 5 pf, 5 pts
24-Larry Slaughter, F - 3/5 fg, 1/1 ft, 8 reb, 2 pf, 7 pts
21-Vadal Faniel, C - 7/10 fg, 1/2 ft, 4 reb, 2 ast, 1 blk, 15 pts
33-Zachary Hollis, F - 1/2 fg, 2/3 ft, 4 reb, 1 blk, 4 pts
32-John Washington, C - 2/3 fg, 5 reb, 1 blk, 4 pts
team rebounds: 4
Totals: 34/74 fg (.459), 14/19 ft (.737), 52 reb, 23 ast, 3 blk, 2 stl, 21 pf, 85 pts
3-pt fg (3): Draper 2, Berry
Fouled Out: Berry 4:39 left, Bilbrew 43 seconds left
Turnovers (17): Draper 4, Scott 4, Bilbrew 2, Faniel 2, Gamiz, Caldwell, Berry, Slaughter, Hollis
Chaffey Panthers 83:
2-Sango Niang, PG - 2/8 fg, 4/4 ft, 4 reb, 6 ast, 2 stl, 2 pf, 9 pts
4-Kenny Morgan, SG - 6/13 fg, 5/6 ft, 7 reb, 1 blk, 1 stl, 1 pf, 20 pts
10-Ryan Nitz, PF - 2/7 fg, 5 reb, 4 ast, 2 pf, 4 pts
21-Todd Lewis, SF - 2/10 fg, 1/2 ft, 7 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl, 2 pf, 5 pts
44-Anthony Fitzpatrick, C - 6/9 fg, 3/6 ft, 11 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl, 3 pf, 15 pts
1-Justin Long, G - 7/16 fg, 3/4 ft, 1 reb, 4 ast, 2 stk, 1 pf, 21 pts
14-Adom Jacko, C - 1/3 fg, 4 reb, 1 blk, 3 pf, 2 pts
5-Justin Cole, G - 1/2 fg, 2 reb, 1 ast, 1 pf, 3 pts
32-D'on Hall, F - 2/8 fg, 1 ast, 1 blk, 2 stl, 1 pf, 4 pts
24-Carl Robinson, G - 2 reb, 1 pf, 0 pts
42-Automane Seck, C - 1 pf, 0 pts
team rebounds: 1
Totals: 29/76 fg (.382), 16/22 ft (.727), 44 reb, 19 ast, 3 blk, 10 stl, 18 pf, 83 pts
3-pt fg (9): Long 4, Morgan 3, Niang, Cole
Turnovers (14): Long 5, Nitz 3, Fitzpatrick 3, Niang, Jacko, Seck
Halftime Score: Chaffey 47, Antelope Valley 44
Updated Records: Antelope Valley 8-5, Chaffey (#4-South, #8-Calif) 11-4
Chaffey led 28-18 7:12 into the 1st half. After a timeout AVC got back in the game and took a 36-34 lead.
Chaffey led by 11 at 67-56 and 74-63 in the 2nd half. AVC took an 83-82 lead on a Faniel putback with 1 minute left.
After Morgan split 2 FTs for Chaffey with 43 secs left, Gamiz hit a baseline jumper with 10 secs left to win it for AVC.
Scott (MVP) & Berry from Antelope Valley, and Niang & Morgan from Chaffey were named to the All-Tournament team.
