Buzzer beater gives Jenks boys win over Edmond Santa Fe
BY BARRY LEWIS World Sports Writer
Saturday, January 26, 2013
1/26/13 at 6:07 AM
JENKS - Jenks senior John Jones ended what had been a frustrating Friday night in the Jenks/Union Invitational semifinals with a celebration.
Jones was mobbed by the Trojans' student section after he swished a 30-foot 3-pointer as time expired to give sixth-ranked Jenks a 56-55 victory over No. 10 Edmond Santa Fe in a potential Class 6A state tournament preview at Frank Herald Gymnasium.
"It was so crazy," Jones said. "This is what you dream about when you're out shooting in the driveway."
The Trojans (13-3) advance to meet top-ranked Midwest City (16-0) in the title game at 8:30 p.m. Saturday at FHG. Midwest City advanced with a 70-53 victory over defending tournament and state champion Union at the Union Multipurpose Activity Center. No. 12 Union faces Santa Fe in the third-place game at 5:30 p.m. at FHG.
"It'll be a fun experience to play the No. 1 team," Jones said.
Jones' semifinal night went from one extreme to another in the final seconds. With Santa Fe leading 55-52, Jones had a chance to tie the game after being fouled on a 3-point attempt with 7.2 seconds left. However, Jones made only 1-of-3 free throws and Jenks had to foul Santa Fe's Dashon Bell with 5.9 seconds remaining.
Bell, who had given the Wolves the lead with a tiebreaking three-point basket with 18.7 seconds left, went to the free throw line but after a Jenks timeout missed the front end of a 1-and-1. The Trojans hurried down court and Jones, despite being closely guarded, connected on the winning shot from well beyond the top of the key after receiving encouragement from head coach Clay Martin and assistant Kalin Dahl.
"I had been struggling all night and Coach Dahl said during the timeout my next one was going in and I believed it," said Jones, who finished with nine points. "Coach Martin is always telling me it's about the next play."
The last shot was Jones' only basket of the second half.
"We talk about all the time that the next play is the most important and that's a great example of the next play," Martin said. "No one else deserved to make that shot but John. After missing the free throws he could've questioned his toughness to make that shot, but not for a minute did he hesitate. I couldn't be happier for him. He's a captain and a leader."
Luke Phillips was Jenks' leading scorer with 16 points and teammate Jacob Seidel added 14. They combined to score 25 of Jenks' 31 points in the second half. Curran Scott led the Wolves (9-6) with 18 points and Daron Mims scored 16.
Although Jenks' Steven Parker scored the game's first five points, the Trojans trailed most of the game but neither team held a lead of more than seven.
Santa Fe scored the last six points of the first half to take a 30-25 lead into intermission. The Trojans rallied for a 39-38 lead on Phillips' three-point play late in the third quarter, but the Wolves responded with an 11-4 run for a 49-43 advantage. Seidel, however, scored three consecutive baskets to tie the game at 49 with 2:03 remaining.
After a tiebreaking basket by the Wolves' Austin Zackery at 1:08, each team made 1-of-2 free throws, before Phillips' layup tied it again at 52 with 36 seconds left and set up a dramatic ending.
Midwest City 70, Union 53: Daryck Jones and Cornell Neal scored 12 points apiece to lead the Bombers over the Redskins (10-6).
Josh Palmer scored 16 of his game-high 17 points in the second half for Union while teammate Carson Meier finished with 16 points.
After Palmer's three-point play cut Midwest City's lead to 39-35 late in the third quarter, the Bombers went on a 17-4 run to break the game open.
Midwest City avenged a 60-57 loss to Union in this tournament's title game last year.
JENKS 56, EDMOND SANTA FE 55
| Ed. Santa Fe |
16 |
14 |
13 |
12 |
- |
55 |
| Jenks |
15 |
10 |
16 |
15 |
- |
56 |
Edmond Santa Fe (9-6): Scott 18, Mims 16, Bell 8, Jefferies 6, Bills 3, House 2, Zackery 2.
Jenks (13-3): Phillips 16, Seidel 14, Jones 9, Parker 9, Clark 5, Washington 3.
MIDWEST CITY 70, UNION 53
| Midwest City |
18 |
11 |
23 |
18 |
- |
70 |
| Union |
7 |
18 |
14 |
14 |
- |
53 |
Midwest City (16-0): Jones 12, Neal 12, Fair 11, Noel 9, Parker 8, Brown 7, Richey 6, Corprew 5.
Union (10-6): Palmer 17, Meier 16, Mead 9, Davis 4, Olden 4, Wannemacher 3.
Original Print Headline: Jenks nips Santa Fe at buzzer
Barry Lewis 918-581-8393
barry.lewis@tulsaworld.com
Associated Images:
Jenks' Steven Parker drives around Edmond Santa Fe's Jaylin Johnson on Friday during the Jenks/Union Invitational in Jenks. CORY YOUNG/Tulsa World
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