Preps BOYS : Chaminade Gets a Couple Seconds and Wins in OT

St. Genevieve’s Troy Easton, diving into the key, tossed up a one-hand layup and scored what appeared to be the game-winning basket at the buzzer at Harvard High School Thursday night.

But while Easton picked his 6-0 frame up from the floor and accepted the congratulations from teammates, the referees put two seconds back on the clock.

Chaminade Coach Mike Lynn, with the additional two seconds, went to work mapping strategy for a last do-or-die play.

And it was a winner. At least one that tied the game, 55-55.

Chaminade’s Fred Fugere caught a length-of-the-court pass and hit a five-foot jumper at the real buzzer to send this first Sante Fe League game into a three-minute overtime.

The overtime was hardly as stunning as Chaminade outscored the Valiants, 10-4, and coasted to a 65-59 victory.

Before the game, the Valiants’ first-year coach Mike Denison knew his team had to use its speed to counter the superior size of Chaminade. And St. Genevieve used its fast break to take a 29-23 lead into the locker room at halftime.

In the third period, Fugere hit two free throws and two baskets to bring the Eagles to within one point with 5:10 left in the period. Joey Chandler took his own rebound and put in a layup for the Eagles to tie the score at 39 as the period came to a close.

The Eagles outscored the Valiants, 16-10, in the third period as St. Genevieve failed to pull down any offensive or defensive rebounds.

Both teams could only manage a combined total of six points in the first three minutes of the fourth period. But Fugere and teammate Kevin Black went into high gear and together scored 14 of the Eagles’ 16 third-period points.

Fugere scored a team-high 19 and the 6-6 sophomore, Black, had 14.

Junior Mo Guardado was the game’s leading scorer with 24 points for the Valiants. Guardado, who is averaging 19 points per game, was the only St. Genevieve player to score in the overtime.

The win improves the Eagles’ overall record to 3-7, while the Valiants are now 6-5.

Chaminade hit 24 of 58 attempts from the field and 18 of 26 times from the foul line. Black led all rebounders with 10 and teammates Terry Siciliano and Jeff Gehl combined for 15.

Thursday’s game could have possibly been a preview of the battle for the Santa Fe League title. St. Genevieve played creditably considering a two-week absence from the court. The Valiants placed third in both the St. Bonaventure and Cathedral tournaments.

Chaminade’s record, on the other hand, could be deemed deceptive. The Eagles have beaten St. John Bosco, a favored Del Rey League powerhouse and lost by one point at the buzzer to Chatsworth, a City 3-A team.