varsity.roanoke.com

KYLE GREEN I The Roanoke Times

Eastern Montgomery's Laquin Khalil (right) scores against Colonial Beach's Tristan Carey (left) during the Mustangs' loss Friday in Richmond.

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RICHMOND -- State high school basketball tournament experience is vastly overrated.

That's the only reasonable conclusion resulting from Friday's dinner time classic staged by Eastern Montgomery's boys and Colonial Beach for the VHSL Group A Division 1 title.

With neither school ever having reached these lofty competitive levels previously, the Drifters had to withstand a last-second failed Mustangs try for one more 3-pointer to emerge with a 77-75 heartstopper of a triumph.

The gallant Mustangs were left in tears. Their second-year coach, Jeff Myers, said it all.

"Very entertaining game," he said. "It was a shame it had to end. That was an exciting game from the first minute to the last five seconds."

The opposing coach, Steve Swope, 30 years at his post and more than 500 victories on his resume, was dumbfounded with joy.

"The feeling is indescribable," he said. "I had to get back to the locker room and at least touch my players to see if it's still real. A couple of them pinched me. I do know it is real now."

Swope's best player, senior Tristan "TT" Carey, was unreal: 37 points, 16 rebounds, 32 minutes played. That left him with 2,481 career points, moving him into third on the state's all-time all-classifications list.

Carey, who stands 6-foot-4, went inside, he shot outside (2-for-7 from 3-point range); he dunked; he stole (four); he turned it over (eight of his team's 23). He was everywhere.

"Thirty-seven and 16 on the biggest stage you can have," said Swope, shirttail tucked back in postgame after spending most of the second leaving it flapping, as is his custom.

Henry Hall, who was one of the two seniors, along with Laquin Khalil, who started alongside three sophomores for EastMont, was suitably impressed after taking on much of the defense of Carey.

"He's probably the toughest player I've guarded," Hall said.

Carey scored 23 points in the second half, 16 in the Drifters' 30-point third quarter. Naturally, he had the ball, backing down from near midcourt for a shot for the lead in the closing seconds. EastMont's Julian Stewart had tied the score at 72 with 36 seconds left, capping a comeback from an eight-point third quarter deficit.

After backing his defender, Hall, all the way down the floor, Carey feathered in a soft jumper from the right of the key to give the Drifters a 74-72 lead with 20.6 seconds left.

"Him backing down like that was like an NBA play," Myers said. "I don't know how you can do that without a five-second call."

Carey's reflections?

"I just thought I needed to take the game in my hands at that point," he said.

Hall fouled him, but Carey missed the conversion. No matter. Teammate Dylan Farinet crashed the backboards for the last of his game-high 19 rebounds. Hall fouled him and was dismissed, the EastMont guard's 21 points and five of his team's tournament-record 13 triples in the books.

Farinet then buried a pair of clutch foul shots for a 76-72 lead with 16.2 left.

Adam Sisson, another Mustangs sophomore, answered with another 3 to slash the deficit to one point with 7.1 seconds showing. Another foul and Farinet was back at the line with 5 seconds left. He missed both.

Despite only having four fouls, the Drifters couldn't avert a last-shot situation for EastMont by giving one. Brad Wooten raced down the floor for the shot, but couldn't connect at the horn.

"I just tried to go to the hole," said Wooten, who finished with 12 points, 11 assists, six rebounds. "The ball bounced the wrong way."

Stewart matched an outstanding semifinal performance with 18 points, six rebounds and five assists.

"Give Eastern Montgomery credit," Swope said. "Those kids shot it well, they were quick, they were athletic, just like every scouting report we had on them."

Swope, like everybody else, agonized to the last half-second.

"When I saw it leave his hand, I knew it was going to be awry. Then the ecstasy of all ecstasies hit."

EASTERN MONTGOMERY (23-5)

Christian 2-5 0-0 5, Wooten 5-14 0-0 12, Hall 8-23 0-0 21, Stewart 7-16 1-2 18, Khalil 4-5 1-1 9, Cerva 0-0 0-0 0, Sisson 3-6 0-0 8, Motley 1-1 0-0 2. Totals: 30-70 2-3 75

COLONIAL BEACH (27-3)

Carey 13-33 9-13 37, Dickerson 3-3 0-0 6, Swope 0-4 1-2 1, Farinet 4-15 8-9 18, Roberson 0-0 0-0 0, Peery 3-5 0-0 8, Dickerson 2-5 3-4 7. Totals: 25-65 21-28 77

Eastern Montgomery 17 16 22 20--75

Colonial Beach 11 16 30 20--77

3-point goals--Eastern Montgomery 13-34 (Christian 1-3, Wooten 2-9, Hall 5-13, Stewart 3-4, Sisson 2-5, Colonial Beach 6-19 (Carey 2-7, Swope 0-4, Farinet 2-4, Peery 2-4. Total fouls -- Eastern Montgomery 19, Colonial Beach 7. Fouled out -- Hall. Rebounds -- Eastern Montgomery 31 (Khalil 7), Colonial Beach 52 (Farinet 19). Assists -- Eastern Montgomery 23 (Wooten 11), Colonial Beach 11 (Farinet 4). Turnovers -- Eastern Montgomery 15 (Hall 5), Colonial Beach 23 (Farinet 11). Blocks -- Eastern Montgomery 0, Colonial Beach 1 (Carey). Steals -- Eastern Montgomery 13 (Wooten 5), Colonial Beach 12 (Crey, Farinet 4).