NEW YORK — Jubilation.
That’s the only word No. 2 Oak Hill Academy (VA) coach Steve Smith could think of when asked to describe Saturday’s 62-60 overtime victory against No. 5 La Lumiere (IN) in the Dick’s Sporting Goods High School Nationals final at Madison Square Garden.
After its 18-point third quarter lead slowly evaporated at the hands of 2017 star forward Brian Bowen and the Lakers, Oak Hill rallied after trailing by three with 40 seconds left to win on a Khadim Sy tip-in at the buzzer, sending the Warriors bench streaming onto the court to pile on senior center.
It is Oak Hill’s first Dick’s Nationals title, with the Virginia squad’s previous four championship game appearances all resulting in losses.
“It’s not how you would draw it up from a coach’s standpoint,” Smith said, “but it’s a championship and that’s all that matters.”
WHAT A FINISH!!! Oak Hill wins AT THE BUZZER in OVERTIME!!! 62-60 Oak Hill is the #DICKSNationals Champion!!! pic.twitter.com/ELUCkF02gM
– DICK’S Nationals (@DICKSNationals) April 2, 2016
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The play was set up by uncommitted 2017 guard Lindell Wigginton, who tied the game at 60 with an old-fashioned three-point play with 30 seconds left, followed by Bowen missed runner in traffic, giving Oak Hill the final shot.
Fellow 2017 star Matt Coleman’s three went begging with three seconds left, as did a Braxton Key tip-in attempt, but Sy soared above two La Lumiere defenders to convert the Warriors’ second chance at a bucket right as time expired.
Despite a plea from the Lakers bench, the officials did not review the basket.
The outcome of the play could very well have been different had uncommitted center Jeremiah Tilmon, No. 28 on ESPN’s 2017 Top 60, not separated his right shoulder early in the first quarter, resulting in him being taken to an area hospital for tests.
But La Lumiere coach Shane Heirman said he was far more prouder of his team’s ability to overcome the massive deficit and Tilmon’s serious injury than he was disappointed by the result.
“You lose a double-digit point rebounder early, that’s a big loss,” Heirman said. “We felt a little defeated, myself included, but I thought our guys rallied well. I’m really proud of the fight, to come back and put yourself in a position to win the game.”
Finally on the winning side after four losses in the tournament title game, a grinning Smith said without Dick’s Nationals MVP and Alabama commit Key, it would have been the Warriors feeling La Lumiere’s heartbreak.
“Braxton was so big in the fourth quarter and at the end of the game,” he said. “When we were down, we went to Braxton.”
After La Lumiere ripped off a 10-0 run to take a 52-50 lead with less than one minute left in the game, Key sank two free throws with six seconds left to send the contest into overtime. In the extra period, his old-fashioned three point play once again tied the game, this time at 57 each with 1:32 remaining.
“Those two free throws, onions baby,” Smith said. “We had to have them or we were dead.”
Key finished with a team-high 20 points and nine rebounds, while Sy finished with nine points and nine boards as well for Oak Hill.
While Oak Hill celebrated, a handful of La Lumiere players were wiping away tears on their way back to the locker room. Bowen, who matched Key’s stat line with 20 points and nine rebounds, said he’s never felt so upset.
“It’s by far the worst feeling in the world right now,” a stunned Bowen. “We’re going to get back here, that’s all I know.”
The cousin of former NBA star Jason Richarson, the 6-foot-7 junior said the ending of La Lumiere’s season will allow him more time to focus on his recruitment, which has picked up in recent months. The junior, No. 26 on ESPN’s 2017 Top 60, has offers from programs like Michigan State, Louisville, Indiana, UCLA and St. John’s, and he told SNY.tv after the game he expects to shorten his list soon.
“Pretty soon I’m definitely going to start cutting my list,” he said. “But some schools are coming in late so I’m just seeing where everyone’s mind is at right now.”
When asked if he had any ideas of which schools would be on his shortlist, the four-star Saginaw, Mich. native said with a grin that he had a few in mind but he wasn’t ready to reveal who just yet. However, he did acknowledge that Michigan State was recruiting him harder than anyone else.
Coleman, who scored just eight points on 3-13 shooting for Oak Hill, told SNY at the Hoophall Classic in January that he would “probably” cut his list, which includes Oregon, UConn, Indiana, Arizona, Texas and St. John’s, during AAU season.
“I’m still open to anybody willing to recruit me,” Coleman, No. 21 on ESPN’s 2017 Top 60, said.
Wigginton fared much better in Saturday’s contest, scoring 16 points and grabbing five rebounds, and the four-star recruit told Scout.com late last month that Oregon is recruiting him the hardest.
“I’ve got a good relationship with them,” said Wigginton, who also has offers from Arizona, Arizona State, and Louisville and is being recruited “hard” by UConn. “I haven’t seen them yet but hopefully I will in the summer.
“I’m still wide open,” he added. “There are a lot of schools recruiting me.”
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NJubilation. That’s the only word No. 2 Oak Hill Academy (VA) coach Steve Smith could think of when asked to describe Saturday’s 62-60 overtime victory against No. 5 La Lumiere (IN) in the Dick’s Sporting Goods High School Nationals final at Madison Square Garden.
