The Blessed Trinity boys took care of one of the giants that have been pestering them all year and, as a result of that victory, will be playing for the Region 6-AAA championship.
The Titans had lost twice to Woodward Academy during the regular season. That didn't seem to matter on Tuesday as Blessed Trinity withstood Woodward's 32 minutes of relentless man-to-man defense and constant pressure and emerged with a 57-43 win in the region semifinals at St. Pius.
"They had beaten us twice during the regular season, but each time we improved," B.T. coach Brian Marks said. ""We've been working on fundamentals all year and we've come a long way. We're a lot more confident than we were when we played them in November."
Blessed Trinity(22-5) lost to Woodward by 17 early in the season and by three points in the rematch. Another slugfest was expected and the game was tied 31-31 late in the third quarter. But senior Patrick Lamar, who has stayed the course through the last three lean years, came alive and scored 10 of the team's last 26 points.
Lamar, who scored 28, sparked a 9-0 run midway in the fourth quarter that enabled the Titans to turn a three-point game into a 12-point game. Woodward, the defending region champs, scored only three points over the final 4:08.
Lamar is one of six seniors on the team, quite a change from a year ago when B.T. had none on its 15-11 team.
"They are like sponges. They soak everything up," Marks said. The last time the TItans had this many seniors, they won 27 games.
Connor O'Neill, who provides some inside toughness and scoring, scored 16. Reece Ryals, another strong senior, added 10 points. Garrett Michael did a good job defensively on Woodward's Trey Williams, and Cameron Johnson was a force at point guard.
Cedar Grove boys clip St. Pius
Cedar Grove, which has only two seniors on its roster, overcame an eight-point halftime deficit to beat St. Pius 40-37 in the other boys semifinal.
The Saints tied the lead for good when Kenneth Lewis scored on a runner with 38.7 seconds remaining. St. Pius center Nick Harris had a chance to tie the game with 20.7 seconds left but missed the first of two free throws, leaving the Golden Lions trailing by one. Cedar Grove's Benjy Parris put the Saints ahead by three by making both ends of a one-and-one with 14.6 seconds. St. Pius got a chance to tie, but Will McGuire's 3-point try came up short at the buzzer.
"It was defense," Cedar Grove coach James Martin said. "In the second half the defense played great. We tried to make them do what they didn't want to do. We work so much on our defense. That's what wins championships."
St. Pius girls survive Blessed Trinity scare
A 12-2 run in the third quarter put defending state champion St. Pius ahead by 10 points and in the driver's seat of the girls semifinal against Blessed Trinity. Or so it seemed.
The Titans scrapped their way back in the game and had a chance to tie it in the last minute, only to fall short, as St. Pius held on for a 49-47 win. Blessed Trinity's chance to tie the game with 16 seconds left ended with a traveling call.
The Golden Lions made only 2 of 6 free throws in the final 1:37 and missed the front end of two one-and-ones.
"I think this is a good wakeup call," St. Pius coach Kyle Snipes said. "A lot of unsung people stepped up tonight. It was a total team effort."
Asia Durr led St. Pius with 29 points and eight rebounds. Jasmine Carter added nine points.
Decatur earned its spot in the region final by overpowering Woodward Academy 61.39. The Bulldogs were the dominant team from the start and will get another shot at St. Pius in the finals on Tuesday. St. Pius won the two regular-season meetings.
"I'm glad we didn't play Decatur tonight," Snipes said. "They played great."
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