▶ OESJ wins, Lake George loses in boys’ state semifinals.
Four-point play with two seconds left forces extra time for Wolfpack
The dexterity of the move Tyler Leon engineered in the waning seconds of regulation play Saturday was reminiscent of the fancy footwork Boston Celtics great Larry Bird unleashed on NBA foes throughout his Hall of Fame career.
Leon’s rare four-point play with two seconds left in the fourth quarter against Section VI champion Panama proved legendary for Oppenheimephratah/st. Johnsville as it forced overtime in its Class D state semifinal.
But as spectacular as Leon’s first 3-pointer of the season and subsequent free throw proved to be, the Wolfpack still had four minutes of OT to navigate. A new hero emerged in the extra session, senior reserve Chris Martin. Playing because senior starter Jaedyn Logan-dillenbeck had fouled out, Martin made two critical baskets to help OESJ secure an improbable 61-57 triumph over the Panthers at Floyd L. Maines Arena in Binghamton.
The Wolfpack compete for a Class D state championship at 2 p.m. Sunday against Section X champion Harrisville (20-6).
Things sure looked dire for OESJ (22-3) Saturday as Panama senior guard Jack Sperry made the front end of a one-and-one foul shooting situation to put the Panthers ahead 50-46 with 14 seconds left. He missed the second attempt and the Wolves advanced the ball up the floor needing a miracle.
Zach Mosher missed on a 3-pointer for OESJ and both teams scrambled to grab the ball. It eventually found its way to Leon, who gathered himself and stepped back for a onelegged shot attempt just beyond the arc. His shot went in, the whistle blew and the trail official ruled Leon’s shot was indeed a 3-pointer. The Panthers stood in stunned silence.
Following a timeout by Panama, Leon knocked down the foul shot.
“I can’t explain that. I have never seen anything like it,” OESJ senior point guard Jack Brundage said. “We fight to the end. We always fight until the end, but down with two seconds left? That is as bad of a situation as you can be in. The first 3-pointer he took in his career and he made it. A good time for us.”
“A four-point play, you don’t draw that up. Honestly, you probably don’t even dream about it,” OESJ coach Jason Brundage said. “But Tyler is a dream come true. Tyler Leon is that type of kid. He doesn’t give up. They play to the final horn. They learned that during soccer season. It drove that point home. It is an example when you don’t give up and kids stay together.”
Before hoisting up his shot, Leon explained, “There was a lot going through my head.”
And what was going on after it went in?
“I was so pumped up. Now,
I’ve got to make this foul shot to force overtime,” Leon said.
“He has been saying all year that he is a 3-point shooter,” Jason Brundage said of Leon.
“Every day at practice, in between drills when we take foul shots, he’ll be shooting 3s like the buzzer is going off and we’ll be screaming at him. Well, it paid off today.”
Leon, for sure, did all the heavy lifting for the Wolves in regulation play. He scored all 20 of his points through four quarters and finished with 21 rebounds. When overtime commenced, Martin went into action.
The senior, who entered the game with 38 points scored all season (tallied in nine of the season’s first 24 games), drained a 3-pointer to put the Wolfpack up 53-52. Later, with OESJ clinging to a one-point lead, Martin grabbed a miss and scored for a 57-54 advantage.
“It feels pretty good. I’m not going to lie,” Martin said.
“He is a great player. He gets lost on the bench at times,” Jack Brundage said. “If you ask Zach Mosher and I, we know how good he is. It is harder to guard him sometimes than it is top players in our league.”
“Chris Martin has been on the bench for two years of JV and all last year on varsity,” Jason Brundage said. “He comes to every summer league thing we have. He has been here the whole time and gotten better and better and better.”
The Wolfpack certainly were euphoric after such a dramatic win, but Jack Brundage (11 points, seven assists) vowed the state’s top-ranked squad will be ready for the state final.
“We know what we have to do. We will be prepared,” Jack Brundage said.