Tommy Mann Jr.
The Port Arthur News
MONT BELVIEU —
Down by two points with under 24 seconds left, the Port Arthur Memorial boys basketball team got two shots in the lane that could have tied the score and sent it into overtime.
Unfortunately for the Titans, neither shot hit home, giving Channelview a 50-48 victory in the District 21-5A tiebreaker game for second place Friday at Barbers Hill.
Both the Titans and Falcons ended the regular season with 7-3 records and played the extra game before the Class 5A playoff begin Tuesday.
With the loss, Memorial gets the third seed from 21-5A and will face South Houston (17-15) in the bidistrict round at a site and time to be determined.
“The kids played hard, I commend them,” Memorial head coach Travis Williams said. “When we went down by 7, they didn’t quit. We did some good things. I applaud the effort. We’ll go back to the drawing board and get ready for South Houston.”
It’s not surprising the game was so even between these two teams who finished the regular season with identical district records. The last matchup went to overtime before the Titans won and this one appeared headed that way again.
With 23.6 seconds left, Memorial was down 50-48 but was coming out of a timeout. Sophomore Albert Jacobs ran the inbounds play, flashing to the lane and putting up a shot almost underneath the basket. That didn’t go, but in the scramble for the loose ball, Channelview knocked it out of bounds, giving Memorial another possession.
Williams again called time-out to set up a play with 7.7 seconds left, this time with Jacobs running wide around the defense before driving into the lane and putting up another shot that rolled just off the rim. The Falcons grabbed the rebound as time expired.
“I thought they did (what we drew up),” Williams said. “Especially on that last play, I thought they did. They tried to, and I’ll take that if they try to do what we ask. I have a problem if they do their own thing.”
Channelview’s 7-point lead in the third quarter was the biggest either team had in the game. The Falcons scored early and held the lead until 1 minute, 45 seconds left in the first half, when sophomore Torian Lott gave the Titans their first lead of the game, hitting a layup in the lane to make it 21-20.
Channelview got the lead right back with a pair of free throws and then the Titans got a little sloppy with the ball, as two straight turnovers gave Channelview two quick baskets and a 26-21 lead.
That lead held until late in the third quarter, when senior Donovan Ford caught fire. Ford tied the score with 50 seconds left In the third with a 3-pointer from the left corner that made it 37-37. He then opened the fourth with another 3-pointer to give the Titans a 40-37 lead.
He then finished a transition play by throwing down a one-handed dunk and getting fouled. He missed the ensuing free throw, but the Titans led 42-37 at that point.
The dunk may have brought the Titan fans to their feet, but it proved to be the final basket Memorial would make in the game. Memorial missed its next eight field goals to end the game.
Ford led all scorers with 17 points, adding six rebounds and an assist. Jacobs had 9 points and four assists while Dorian Chatman added 5 points, five rebounds and six blocks.
Those blocks were a big reason why the Titans were able to hold Channelview down long enough to erase those second and third quarter deficits.
“Dorian had some big rebounds and blocks,” Williams said. “ We put him in with Tre (Armstead) and we had some nice defensive stands. We went with some size to help get some rebounds. We felt they couldn’t handle our size.”
Memorial finished the regular season with a 17-13 record while Channelview was 19-10. The Falcons will play 22-5A’s third seed Pasadena Rayburn on Tuesday.
Channelview 50, Port Arthur Memorial 48
PAM 9 14 14 11 -- 48
CV 13 14 10 13 -- 50
PAM: Tre’Von Armstead 6, Roderic Rucker 2, Aerian Jackson 2, Albert Jacobs 9, Torian Lott 5, Dorian Chatman 5, Donovan Ford 17, TreVaughn Dennis 1.
CV: Stanley Wesley 3, Miller 12, Wolfe 3, Redmond 13, Alpough 2, Marquis Johnson 3, Brown 4, Taylor 10.
Statistics – Rebounds: Memorial 30 (Ford 6), Channelview 22 (Taylor 6). Assists: Memorial 9 (Jacobs 4), Channelview 6 (Wesley 2). Steals: Memorial 5 (Jackson 2), Channelview 11 (Miller 6). Turnovers: Memorial 20, Channelview 14. Fouls: Memorial 16, Channelview 14.
Records: Memorial (17-13); Channelview (19-10).
