Video: 2020 MLK Jr. Classic highlightsWatch highlights from seven great games at St. Mary's College.
MORAGA, Calif. — It
took all day and about 11 hours, but after six games of the 23rd MaxPreps/De La Salle
Martin Lurther King Jr. Classic at St. Mary’s College, the fans got a
thriller.
Jalen Lewis, a highly-touted 6-foot-9, 14-year-old freshman from
Bishop O'Dowd (Oakland, Calif.), drilled a 17-footer with four seconds left to give the Dragons a 50-49 victory over
Campolindo (Moraga) in the nightcap Monday night.
Lewis (15 points, eight rebounds, two blocks) took a pass from
Marsalis Roberson at the free throw line, took one step back and swished the jumper under heavy duress.
Campolindo (13-5), which led 39-30 heading into the final quarter, didn’t call out and didn’t get a shot off. That's because Roberson intercepted the ensuing inbound pass.
O'Dowd players and coaches celebrate following Jalen Lewis' game-winning shot.
Photo by Todd Shurtleff
The
last-second make finished off a more than 10 hours of superb basketball
in games that were largely one sided. Five of the games were decided by
double digits and host De La Salle-Concord won by nine. It was in stark contrast to last year's games that were decided by an average of 5.3 points.
Fans were ready for a last-second contest and Lewis delivered.
“I
felt relaxed,” Lewis said about taking the last shot. “It felt good
when it left my hands. That’s definitely the biggest shot I’ve made at
O’Dowd. Thus far.”
O’Dowd was out-husted and out-rebounded most of the game by the smaller Cougars, who got 16 points from sophomore post
Matt Radell and 12 by
Emmanuel Callas. But down the stretch, the Dragons got huge fourth-quarter play from Roberson and Cal-bound
Monty Bowser who each tallied 14 points to go along with 11 and seven rebounds, respectively.
Roberson,
a 6-4 junior, set up the last score with a big steal and he did most of
the defensive work on Campolindo’s top player, 6-3 sophomore point
guard
Aidan Mahaney, who finished with nine points.
Campolindo point-guard Aidan Mahaney takes a jump shot in front of Monty Bowser of Bishop O'Dowd.
Photo by Todd Shurtleff
"He
wants to take the other team's best player," O'Dowd coach Lou Richie
said of Roberson. "He's long and athletic and I think he had a lot to do
with Aidan's shot being off."
After Bowser gave O'Dowd it's first lead since the second quarter 44-42 with 3:27 left, Aidan Mahaney drilled his only three-pointer to put Campolindo up, 45-44. When Callas followed with a layup, it looked like Campolindo gained back control. But Bowser swished two free throws to cut the lead to 47-46.
Rex Curtiss made one free throw to make it 48-46 before Roberson knifed into the lane for a another deuce to tie things at 48-48 with 1:40 left. A Chase Bennett free throw gave Campolindo a 49-48 lead, but after a couple of possessions, Roberson stole a pass and O'Dowd called timeout to set up the final shot.
Lewis said he was supposed to curl inside for a layup off a screen, but the middle was clogged so he stepped to the free throw to collect Roberson's pass. He never hesitated and swished the ball in.
Mahaney, his brother
Carter Mahaney and Callas were all saddled with four fouls early in the fourth quarter.
“It
was a tough loss,” Carter Mahaney said. He finished with eight points.
“”We didn’t execute down the stretch. Give them credit. That was a big-time shot for a freshman."
Jalen Lewis, Bishop O'Dowd
Photo by Todd Shurtleff
Here is the rest of the day's action.
The dynamic backcourt of
Mi'son Coilton and
Donjae’ Lindsey
each tallied 21 points as Cougars (10-10) took a double-digit lead in
the third quarter and never relented to win their fifth straight game.
Lindsey
6-foot-3 junior win scored 17 of his 21 in the second half, including
11 in the fourth quarter. Coilton, a 6-2 junior, was aggressive from the
outset as Weston Ranch jumped out to a 15-7 lead and never trailed.
Moreau
Catholic (10-7) was effective in the second and fourth quarter, when it
scored 18 points each, but struggled in the first and third quarters.
Trey Knight scored 16 points to lead the way for the Mariners, who played hard, but couldn't overcome 21-of-60 shooting from the field.
Neither
team helped itself from the line, Moreau going 7-of-13 and Weston Ranch
7-for-15.
Donjae' Lindsey, Weston Ranch
Photo by Todd Shurtleff
Trey Knight, Moreau Catholic
Photo by Todd Shurtleff
Poly
came in with a sterling 15-3 record record and averaging 72.8 points
per game, but the Bears ran into a tenacious defensive effort from
Capital Christian (13-7), which posted a statement win.
The
Cougars held Poly to a combined 12 points in the middle quarters and
used great depth, balance and 12 points from impressive 6-6 sophomore
Darrion Williams to post the lopsided win.
Capital
Christian played Northern California's top-ranked team Sheldon
(Sacramento) even for a half, before losing by 20 points on Saturday.
The Cougars left the rough half behind, by taking control in the second
quarter with a 16-4 run. Poly, which got a game-high 15 points from San
Diego State-bound
Lamont Butler,
could never recovered. It scored just eight points in the third
quarter, while seven different Cougars scored in the third quarter to
take a commanding lead.
Caden Flowers
drilled three 3-pointers for the winners, who had 11 different players
score. Nobody other than Butler scored more than six points for Poly.
Darrion Williams, Capital Christian
Photo by Todd Shurtleff
Lamont Butler, Poly
Photo by Todd Shurtleff
Malik Thomas, an explosive 6-3 guard who has been putting up huge numbers for the last month, busted for 26 points,
Austin Cook had 15 and
RJ Smith contributed 12 as the Spartans (17-5) broke open a close game with a 41-23 run in the second half to win going away.
Thomas both drove to the hole, made mid-range and drilled three three-pointers en route to game-high honors.
It's
a long trip from Orange County for a one-day event and the Pride from
Salesian didn't make it any more pleasant for the Tritons, who didn't
score double figures in any of the first three quarters.
Meanwhile,
the Pride (15-3) got great inside work from 6-8, 275-pound post
Te'Jon Sawyer (17 points, 12 rebounds) in a resounding victory. Charles Erving
was the only other player in double figures to lead Pacifica Christian
(15-6), which won a double-overtime game on Friday and lost an 84-67
game to Valencia on Saturday.
"Not to take
anything away from our effort, but we probably caught them on a good
day," Salesian coach Bill Mellis said. "Good day for us, bad day for
them."
It's been nothing but good days for
Sawyer, who doesn't look as tall or heavy as his listed size. He leads
the Pride in scoring at 17.1 points per game and 8.0 rebounds per game.
Blessed with soft hands and nimble feet, Sawyer constantly moved out
taller Tritons with his strong frame. He made 7-of-10 shots, all in the
interior.
"(Sawyer is in great shape and he's been great all season," Mellis said. "He's really worked at his game and it's showed."
Though
defense stood out for the Pride — Pacifica Christian's top two scorers
Houston Mallette and Judah Brown combined for 15 points (they average
double that) — two marquee lob plays drew big cheers from the big crown.
Austin Johnson sent a backdoor pass to a
flying
Shane Bell for an emphatic dunk in the middle of the second
quarter. A few minutes later, Bell returned the favor only this time to
6-9
Demarshay Johnson Jr. for another big dunk on a fastbreak
"We
got guys who can do those kind of things," Mellis said. "One (Bell's
dunk) was off a set but the other was a fastbreak. Not something you can
exactly coach."
Te'Jon Sawyer, Salesian
Photo by Todd Shurtleff
Demarshay Johnson, Salesian
Photo by Todd Shurtleff
In
a microcosm of their season, the young Spartans showed signs greatness
and youth but in the end got multiple contributions in hard-fought
victory over the No. 1 ranked team in Oregon.
Washington
scored all of his points in the second half and keyed a 12-3 run when
De La Salle fell behind 30-23. Washington scored on a series of interior
buckets. He also did a nice job guarding Central Catholic's season
leading scorer
Darius Gakwasi who tied
Deray Seamster with team-high honors of 12 points.
"There's
been times this year Alonzo has been our best player on the court,"
said De La Salle coach Justin Argenal. "His physicality and overall play
tonight was huge."
De La Salle locked
down on defense and didn't give up a bucket while taking a 10-3 lead
after one. But from there, the Spartans really struggled offensively,
missing many open perimeter shots. Luke Johnson (10 points) scored five
quick points and Central Catholic (8-5) took its first lead 19-18,
before two free throws by Christian Carter gave DLS a 20-19 lead.
In
the third, two 3-pointers and a breakaway layup by Daniels helped give
De La Salle a 35-33 lead heading into the fourth. Washington scored two
interior buckets in the fourth and De La Salle was on its way.
"It
took us some time to adjust to their zone," Argenal said. "But
eventually we settled down. We locked in on defense. It was a very good
win."
Chris Bunch, De La Salle
Photo by Todd Shurtleff
Luke Johnson, Central Catholic
Photo by Todd Shurtleff
Dublin
coach Tom Costello said it wasn't glamorous, but he'll more than take
it after the Gaels (14-2), coming off a couple of East Bay Athletic
League losses, gave up just 21 second-half points en route to a gritty
comeback win.
"We executed our defensive game plan to a tee," Costello said. "Our defense and rebounding one this for us."
The
Gaels, ranked No. 1 by The Chronicle heading into last week, lost EBAL
games to Granada-Livermore (55-53) and De La Salle (77-66), in what
Costello called "a taste of humble pie."
Modesto Christian (13-6), which had its seven-game win streak snapped, got 13 points apiece from
Michael Pearson and
Alex Merkviladze.
Jaden Saunders, Dublin
Photo by Todd Shurtleff
Michael Pearson, Modesto Christian
Photo by Todd Shurtleff
