Rams' buzzer-beater sinks Tigerhawk boys
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| Colfax-Mingo senior Vaughn Wilson puts up a contested shot in the second half of the Tigerhawks' 62-60 overtime loss to Greene County Tuesday night. Wilson led Colfax-Mingo with 21 points and 11 rebounds. (Mike Hockett/Daily News) |
COLFAX — First, it was a Tigerhawks blowout.
Then, it was a Tigerhawks collapse.
And in the end, it was Tigerhawks heartbreak.
The Colfax-Mingo boys basketball team experienced the full spectrum of emotions Tuesday night in its 62-60 overtime loss to Greene County, ranging from comfortable elation to sudden devastation.
Tigerhawks senior Vaughn Wilson made two free throws to give the Tigerhawks a 60-59 lead with 9.7 seconds left to play in OT. Having snapped a 25-game losing streak three nights earlier, it appeared Colfax-Mingo was going to start its first winning streak in seemingly forever.
The Rams had other ideas. Coming out of a timeout, the Rams went the length of the court, dished a pass to senior Tory Yeger at the top of the key, and he buried a game-winning three-pointer as time expired.
It was the first win of the season for Greene County (1-2), while Colfax-Mingo moved to 1-3.
The Rams were powered by a heroic second-half performance from sophomore Landon Braun — the smallest player on the court at 5-foot-6. He scored 21 of his game-high 27 points between the third and fourth quarters, including five 3-pointers. Senior Reed Ostrander also had 21 points.
Colfax-Mingo got a big first-half from senior Connor Hainer, who scored 17 of his 19 points before the break. He made five 3-pointers in the first half, including three straight in the first quarter. He also had five steals. Fellow senior Vaughn Wilson had a team-high 21 points and 11 rebounds, nearly willing the Tigerhawks to victory down the stretch.
Midway through the second quarter, it appeared the Tigerhawks were on their way to an easy win. Their offense was running and gunning with Hainer’s hot shooting for a 17-6 lead after one quarter and the margin peaked at 29-11 midway through the second.
That’s when the Rams started firing. They closed the first half on a 10-2 run to close within 10 points of the Tigerhawks at 31-21.
C-M found things tough-going in the third quarter. Their open looks at the basket disappeared, and the Rams’ shots that missed in the first half started falling with regularity. The Tigerhawks didn’t score until a Wilson basket nearly three-and-a-half minutes into the quarter, and they were outscored 14-3 overall and suddenly trailed 37-34 entering the fourth.
Once the fourth quarter started, Bruan was simply unstoppable for the next five minutes of game time. He scored 14 points in that time, including three 3-pointers. His old-fashioned three-point-play with 3:03 left to play gave the Rams a 51-44 lead.
Colfax-Mingo came right back. It switched to a full-court press and took away Braun’s open shots. Offensively, it put together a 9-0 run with baskets from Wilson, senior Trent Pease, junior Nathaniel Smith, two free throws from senior Ausin Yoakum and one from Hainer. That put the Tigerhawks ahead 53-51 with 47 seconds left.
Rams senior Reed Ostrander’s basket tied the game with 35 seconds to go and then the Tigerhawks called a timeout with 16.7 seconds remaining to set up a final play. Sadly, Pease’s 3-pointer missed with four ticks left and the game went to overtime.
Wilson scored six of C-M’s seven points in the extra session, the final two coming on two free throws that gave the Tigerhawks a 60-59 lead with 9.7 seconds to go. Coming out of a timeout, Braun brought the ball upcourt and threw it over to Braun, who nailed the game-winner.
Greene County 62, Colfax-Mingo 60 (OT)
GC — 6 15 16 16 9 — 62
CM — 17 14 3 19 7 — 60
CM scorers — Wilson 21, Hainer 19, Pease 9, Smith 6, Yoakum 5.
