Former Eagle helps in OT win
STOCKTON — Nate Gotgotao-Washington knows how to deliver the basketball in clutch time.
One of three Lodi-area boys basketball players competing in the fourth annual Senior All-Star Game at Delta College’s Blanchard Gym on Friday, Washington, who graduated from Elliot Christian High earlier this month, helped Team Black register a 91-89 win over Team White in overtime. Lodi High center Marcell Roberts and guard Chase Shafter were also on Team Black. Lodi High assistant coach Ammer Johnson served as Team White’s head coach and former Lodi High head coach Dave Nutting was Johnson’s assistant coach.
Entering overtime with the score at 84-84, GotgotaoWashington, who scored 15 of his 21 points in the second half, scored only one point in OT. But it came at the right time, as Team Black held a 90-89 lead with 8.4 seconds left in OT. Fouled while trying to drive inside the paint toward the basket, GotgotaoWashington sank 1-of-2 free throws for the final score.
Team White inbounded the ball and quickly took it up the court for an attempt to move the basketball inside for a bucket and a second overtime. The lay-up went through the net but the clock had already sounded to give Team Black the win.
Team Black’s George Carter (Brookside Christian) had a chance to break an 84-84 score when he was fouled while trying to drive to the basket with 4 seconds left in the second half. But he missed his free throw. Team White was unable to get the ball before the buzzer that sent the game into overtime.
Gotgotao-Washington hitting two shots that helped his team get to within one each time at 67-66 at 10:47 and 65-64 at 11:11 in the half.
At 10:23 in the game, Johnson and Nutting took out the five Team White players on the court and substituted five more in an attempt to slow down Team Black’s scoring momentum, which had picked up in the last four minutes and trimmed Team White’s lead to 67-66. But that seemed to only ignite Gotgotao-Washington, as the former Elliot Christian High boys basketball player canned a 3-pointer with 10:10 that gave Team Black a 69-67 lead.
Team White held a 48-38 lead at halftime. To start the 20-minute second half —