Craigmont almost pulls off upset
Nation’s top-ranked team escapes with Hoopfest win ON THE WEB
Visit thememphisedge.com for John Varlas’ blogging from the tournament. chance to tie, but Sam Craft missed a 3pointer as the clock expired.
“Whew,” said a spent Chiefs coach David Taylor. “We just ran out of time.”
Taylor likens his team to a wolfpack because of its tenacity and mental toughness. And those qualities were on display at White Station’s Spartan Palace as the Chiefs battled the Warriors (29-0 and ranked first nationally by ESPN) on pretty much level terms.
“We truly seized the moment,” Taylor said. “They were getting fatigued and I thought we would get there. It was a great game, a great atmosphere. Great for the city of Memphis.”
Facing a team with a big reputation — five of Oak Hill’s players have signed Division 1 scholarships, including future Memphis Tiger Damien Wilson, who scored five points — didn’t faze the Chiefs.
They took the game to Oak Hill from the start and stayed within striking distance all game.
Leading the way for Craigmont was guard Jordan Washington, who played one of his best games in a Chiefs uniform and finished with 20 points.
“He wants to go to college (and play basketball),” said Taylor. “He knows what he has to do. He’s becoming more of a leader.”
Craigmont was trailing 65-60 when
Robert Houston buried a 3pointer to cut the margin to 65-63 with 14.9 seconds to go.
Jordan Adams, who is headed to UCLA, pushed the lead back to four with a pair of free throws, and Craft, last year’s state tournament Most Valuable Player as a sophomore, buried a 3 from the concession stand to make it 6766.
Georgetown-bound D’vauntes Smith-rivera sank two free throws to restore Oak Hill’s 3-point cushion with 7.6 seconds to go and Craft, who finished with 16 points, missed the potential game -tying bucket.
“Our size actually worked to our disadvantage,” said Oak Hill coach Steve Smith after watching his team chase around the speedy Chiefs all game.
“We knew No. 11 (Craft) was good off the dribble and No. 20 (Washington) made some big shots. Give them credit .”
Oak Hill wouldn’t have won without a huge performance from Adams, a senior with a linebacker’s body and a surgeon’s touch. He finished with a game -high 24.
“He’s a beast,” said Taylor. “He’s going to UCLA. Well, I can see why. And I can see why they’re No. 1. They’re a great team.
“We almost got there.”