Sunday, March 14, 2010

By Rich Barton
NJS.com Staff Writer

TOMS RIVER – After handily beating previously undefeated Paterson Catholic in the Non-Public North B section final, it seemed the stars were aligned for St. Anthony to make yet another run toward immortality. The Friars had not lost in a state final in over 30 years, winning the last 19 times it made it that far. Its opponent, Trenton Catholic, had lost in each of the past two years in the Non-Public B state final, including a 30-point drubbing two years ago at the hands of St. Anthony, and had not won a state title since 1990.

But Trenton Catholic had a pair of starters from the championship game loss in 2008 on the floor on Saturday and both came up big in scoring the school’s biggest win in two decades that needed three overtimes to decide.

Frantz Manhasset came up with a big steal in the third overtime and Khalid Lewis pulled down a rebound in the final seconds. He dribbled out the clock and ended St. Anthony’s bid for a record 26th state title by handing the Friars their first loss in a state title game since 1979 with a heartbreaking 57-56 setback before 3,400 at the Ritacco Center.

“This is the best feeling ever, I don’t think anything could top it,” said Manhasset, who will play at Drexel next year. “I’ve been working every day for three years to get this opportunity. To beat a team as great as St. Anthony’s in my senior year is beyond my wildest dreams.”

The game started nearly 40 minutes late due to the weather conditions that caused the St. Anthony’s to get stuck in traffic and eventually caused the cancellation of the St. Peter’s Prep-Camden Catholic Non-Public A state final.

A three-pointer from Lewis gave Trenton Catholic a 9-6 lead after one quarter, but the lead did not last long. The Friars hit 9 of their 10 shots in the second period, including three three-pointers D’Marcus Owens and Lucious Jones and a pair of buckets from Elijah Carter as St. Anthony’s ripped off 11 straight points en route to a 28-19 halftime lead.

St. Anthony held an eight-point lead heading into the fourth quarter when Lewis gave the Iron Mikes the shot in the arm they desperately needed. His three-point play got them back within striking distance and they stayed that way through the remainder of the game.

Markese Tucker’s basket with 2:49 to play gave the Iron Mikes their first lead since early in the second quarter, 39-38. Owens responded with a three-pointer from the corner, but Manhasset answered by hitting a pair of free-throws. Trenton Catholic got the ball back and had a chance to win in regulation, but Manhasset’s shot was well off the mark and the teams went to overtime.

Trenton Catholic was up by two with the ball and 22 seconds left, but St. Anthony’s Jordan Quick made a steal off the inbounds pass and Derrick Williams was fouled going to the basket. He made both free-throws with 9.5 seconds left to tie the game. The Iron Mikes best look of the first overtime session came at the buzzer when Manhasset’s layup rolled off the rim and the teams looked towards a second overtime.

“That was frustrating to watch, but we had to get it out of our minds and onto the next overtime,” said Trenton Catholic’s Khalid Lewis. “Great teams always look ahead. They never look back at what could have been.”

Down by two with less than a minute to play, the smallest guy on the court came up huge. Owens nailed another three-pointer to put the Friars ahead by one. Manhasset was fouled on the ensuing possession and made one of two free-throws to tie the game at 52.

St. Anthony had two chances in the final seconds to win it in the second OT. Owens’ three-pointer was off and Devon Collier got the rebound. But instead of pulling it down and going back up with the ball, he thought there was only a second left, so he tried to tap it back in the basket. It missed and both teams and a capacity crowd had to mentally and emotionally prepare for a third overtime.

“We had our chance right there and we couldn’t put the ball in the basket,” said St. Anthony’s head coach Bob Hurley. “I’m pretty sure Devon (Collier) was not aware of exactly how much time was left and just wanted to get the ball up on the rim.”

Collier fouled out on the first possession of the third overtime to take away the Friars’ biggest option inside. Their other option, Williams, gave them their only lead of the third overtime on a three-point play for a 55-54 lead.

The Iron Mikes then got an unexpected spark off the bench from Ronnie Paden with just over a minute to play. He created a steal off of their full-court press and his only points of the game were on a layup that put Trenton Catholic ahead to stay, 56-55.

Owens missed a pair of free-throws and the Friars were forced to foul. Manhasset hit 1 of 2 from the charity stripe with 19 seconds to play. On the the Friars' final possession, the St. Bonaventure-bound Carter went hard to the rim and was fouled just as hard by Manhasset. His first free-throw was good to cut the lead to one with 4.7 seconds left.

But the second shot missed and Lewis was able to snatch down the rebound and run out the clock to end the marathon classic.

“It’s weird because we did it and yet I still can’t believe we did it,” said Lewis. “You think about playing all your life in a game like this, but you never think it’s actually going to happen. We just had to keep fighting and find a way to make plays.”

Manhasset led all players with 20 points for Trenton Catholic (26-3). Lewis added 15 points, and Dondre Whitmore had 12. Collier had a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds for St. Anthony, which finished the season with a 27-3 record. Carter led the team in scoring with 13 points, while Williams had 11 points and seven rebounds. Owens chipped in with eight points, five assists, and three steals. But the Friars made just 9 of 21 from the free-throw line in the game, as compared to Trenton Catholic’s 11 of 14 in the three overtime sessions.

Any game is exhausting to be a part of. But when it goes to three overtimes, and it is a state final, and it ends up as a loss, it is a bitter pill to swallow.

“We’re definitely disappointed because we had opportunities to come away with a win and we let it slip away,” added Hurley. “It was a great game for the fans and any time a game goes to three overtimes, especially a state final, it’s one that will be etched in the minds of everyone who witnessed it. But it is hard to take when you give it everything you have and you don't come away with a win. We gave it everything we had, we just didn’t execute enough at the right time, especially at the foul line.”

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