It certainly wasn't easy, but after losing a 13-point lead and a separate 8-point lead in the second half, #8 Antelope Valley overcame a 4-point deficit with less than 8 seconds left in regulation time and played near-flawless basketball in overtime to stay unbeaten with a thrilling 89-82 win over host LA Valley Saturday night in Valley Glen.
PG Da'Shawn Gomez had a triple-double, SF Jason Johnson had 25 pts and PG Chris Bridges had 3 threes in OT, but none of it would have mattered much for AVC if not for SG Michaelyn Scott's game-tying 3-pointer with 0.1 seconds left in regulation time.
The Marauders (4-0) trailed, 66-62, when Gomez went to the free throw line for three shots with 7.5 seconds left in regulation. He made two of three, to make it 66-64, but LA Valley SF Daryl Singontiko made one of two free throws with 6.2 seconds left to make it 67-64. Without a timeout, AVC brought the ball upcourt in one last desperate attempt to tie the game.
Gomez brought the ball into the frontcourt and passed it to Scott, who was wide open in the left corner, and the 6-2 freshman knocked down the 3-pointer to tie the score and send the game to overtime.
Once in overtime, AVC had little trouble, particularly in comparison to 40 minutes of regulation time in which LA Valley (0-4) gave the Marauders all they could handle. AVC went 7-for-9 from the floor in OT with four 3-pointers and just one turnover, never trailing again after Scott's 3-pointer.
But in regulation time, the game was even all the way. LA Valley jumped out to an early 9-4 lead after a 3-pointer by PG Alex Strauther, but Antelope Valley rallied to lead, 13-12, midway through the half after a basket by Ctr Reggie Murphy. LA Valley went back in front on a 3-point play by Ctr Robert Looper, and led by four points at 24-20, before AVC went on an 8-0 run late in the half to take a 28-24 lead. A 3-point basket by SG Marcus Johnson brought the Monarchs within a point at 28-27 at the break.
In the second half, Johnson, who had just 4 points in a foul-plagued first half, caught fire and scored 11 straight AVC points at one point as the Marauders built a 45-34 lead, which became 47-34 moments later on a lay-up by Scott after a steal. But LA Valley responded with a 13-0 run, tying the game at 47 on a dunk by SF Domanique Cotton with just over seven minutes remaining.
AVC went back in front, 50-47, on a 3-point play after a third-chance putback by Murphy, and pushed the lead to eight points at 61-53 after a 3-pointer by Gomez. But Johnson answered with a 3-pointer a few seconds later for LA Valley, and the Monarchs tied the score on another Johnson 3-pointer with 58.9 seconds left that made it 62-62.
Then LA Valley seemed to take control of the game. Scott was called for a charging foul with 42.9 seconds left, and Looper scored after a pass from Johnson to give LA Valley a 64-62 lead with 19.2 seconds to go. After an AVC turnover on an inbounds play, LA Valley got two free throws from Strauther to make it 66-62 with 11.0 seconds left.
But AVC got a break when Gomez was fouled attempting a 3-pointer with 7.5 seconds left, and that started the late Marauder rally that included Scott's buzzer-beating game-tying 3-pointer. Then in overtime, AVC took a quick lead on a Bridges 3-pointer and never trailed, scoring 22 points in overtime alone.
There were quite a few impressive statistics in the game. Gomez had a Jason Kidd-like triple-double with 10 pts, 10 rebs and 14 asts. Johnson had 25 pts, 21 of which came after halftime. Scott had 20 pts, 6 rebs and 5 asts, and Murphy had a double-double with 10 pts and a game-high 11 rebs. And Briges had just 9 pts, but they all came on 3-pointers and, more importantly, they all came in overtime as AVC pulled away for the win.
For LA Valley, Johnson had an outstanding game with 21 pts, 5 rebs and 5 asts. He also made 3 three-pointers and had 8 points in overtime. Looper was 8-for-11 from the floor for 20 pts and 7 rebs. Cotton had 10 pts and Strauther managed 9 pts though he was 2-for-14 and dished out a team-high 12 asts.
box score
Saturday, November 19, 2011 - 7 pm
at the Monarch Sports Pavilion, Valley Glen
Antelope Valley Marauders 89:
10-Da'Shawn Gomez, PG - 3/9 fg, 2/3 ft, 10 reb, 14 ast, 1 stl, 2 pf, 10 pts
11-Jason Johnson, SF - 8/15 fg, 5/8 ft, 2 reb, 2 ast, 2 pf, 25 pts
12-Michaelyn Scott, SG - 8/18 fg, 2/4 ft, 6 reb, 5 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl, 3 pf, 20 pts
21-Sean Boston, PF - 3/5 fg, 2/3 ft, 3 reb, 1 blk, 1 stl, 5 pf, 8 pts
34-Reggie Murphy, C - 4/10 fg, 2/3 ft, 11 reb, 1 ast, 4 pf, 10 pts
20-Chris Bridges, G - 3/6 fg, 2 reb, 2 ast, 1 blk, 2 pf, 9 pts
24-Larry Slaughter, F - 2/3 fg, 1/5 ft, 7 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 2 stl, 1 pf, 5 pts
42-Dwan Caldwell, C - 0/1 fg, 3 reb, 1 ast, 3 pf, 0 pts
2-Terrance Berry, F - 1/2 fg, 4 reb, 2 ast, 3 pf, 2 pts
22-Vadal Faniel, F - 0/1 fg, 1 ast, 0 pts
3-Joshua Blaylock, G - 0/1 fg, 2 pf, 0 pts
32-John Washington, C - 0/1 fg, 1 reb, 2 pf, 0 pts
team rebounds: 4
Totals: 32/72 fg (.444), 14/26 ft (.538), 53 reb, 29 ast, 4 blk, 5 stl, 29 pf, 89 pts
3-pt fg (11): Johnson 4, Bridges 3, Gomez 2, Scott 2
Fouled Out: Boston 1:40 left in OT
Turnovers (20): Johnson 4, Scott 4, Gomez 3, Boston 2, Murphy 2, Caldwell 2, Berry, Faniel, team
Los Angeles Valley Monarchs 82:
2-Alex Strauther, PG - 2/14 fg, 3/4 ft, 6 reb, 12 ast, 1 stl, 4 pf, 9 pts
3-Domanique Cotton, SF - 4/11 fg, 2/3 ft, 5 reb, 10 pts
12-Marcus Johnson, SG - 7/16 fg, 4/5 ft, 5 reb, 5 ast, 1 blk, 3 pf, 21 pts
20-Eddie LaTorre, PF - 1/4 fg, 1/2 ft, 8 reb, 2 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl, 5 pf, 3 pts
32-Robert Looper, C - 8/11 fg, 4/6 ft, 7 reb, 2 pf, 20 pts
5-Justin Cook, F - 2/11 fg, 2/6 ft, 4 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 2 stl, 4 pf, 6 pts
15-Margarito Pelayo, F - 2/5 fg, 1 reb, 6 pts
4-Willie Crenshaw, G - 0/1 fg, 2 reb, 2 ast, 0 pts
23-Rondell Bennet, C - 0 pts
24-Daryl Singontiko, F - 2/3 fg, 3/6 ft, 4 reb, 1 pf, 7 pts
team rebounds: 5
Totals: 28/76 fg (.368), 19/32 ft (.594), 47 reb, 22 ast, 3 blk, 4 stl, 20 pf, 82 pts
3-pt fg (7): Johnson 3, Strauther 2, Pelayo 2
Fouled Out: LaTorre 4:53 left in regulation
Turnovers (14): Crenshaw 4, Strauther 2, Cotton 2, LaTorre 2, Johnson, Hooper, Cook, Singontiko
Halftime Score: Antelope Valley 28, LA Valley 27
End of Regulation: Tied at 67
Updated Records: Antelope Valley (#8-South, #16-Calif preseason) 4-0, LA Valley 0-4
AVC led by 13 at 47-34, but LA Valley went on a 13-0 run to tie it.
AVC went back ahead by 8 at 61-53, but LA Valley went on a 13-1 run to lead, 66-62.
Scott hit a 3-pointer with 0.1 left to tie the game and send it to OT.
Bridges made 3 threes in OT. AVC was 7-for-9 with 4 threes and just 1 turnover in OT.
