By Jim Workman
Register-Herald Sports Writer
CHARLESTON —
Down by five points with just 1:17 left in the game, Wyoming East needed to regain its momentum.
As much as the tide had shifted, it also appeared to need a miracle. The Warriors had led by as many as 16 points in the first half.
Senior guard Evan Muscari and junior guard Chase Morgan stepped in with big plays on both the offensive and defensive ends of the floor down the stretch as No. 1 Wyoming East held on to defeat No. 4 seed Tug Valley 67-63 in a Class AA state tournament semi-final Friday at the Civic Center.
Morgan hit a 3 to trim the Tug Valley lead to 63-61 with 47 seconds left, Muscari tied it at 63-63 with a steal and a bucket with 40 ticks left, and each connected on 2-of-2 free throws following critical defensive takeaways inside 10 seconds remaining to provide the margin of victory.
The Warriors (22-2) will take on No. 2 Oak Hill (20-4) at noon today for the Class AA state championship.
Wyoming East will be playing in its fourth consecutive state title game, winning in 2007 and 2008 and finishing as runner-up to Ravenswood in 2009.
Muscari led Wyoming East with a game-high 23 points, while adding four assists and four steals.
Morgan netted 21 points, adding four steals and three assists. Alex Webb, a junior guard/forward, chipped in with 15 points, seven rebounds, two blocks and two steals for East.
Wyoming East coach Rory Chapman remained confident in his team despite the fourth quarter setback.
“You have to give Tug Valley credit,” he said. “They kept chipping away at us and never stopped. Then we hit a dry spell.
“But we’ve been down and we’ve had some close games before,” Chapman added. “I guess we’re comfortable in any situation. I just told our guys that we’d come too far — the game wasn’t over. I felt like our guys would step up and they did.”
Tug Valley had four players scoring in double figures, led by senior guard Channing Preece who put in 19 points.
Nathan Brewer posted 13 points and 14 rebounds for the Panthers. Mason Pack also scored 13 with Austin Vance adding 10 more.
“It was a good ballgame — a classic from wire to wire,” said Tug Valley coach Garland Thompson. “I’ll give it to Wyoming East. They gave us a tough way to go, especially in the first half. But we battled back to get in it. We just made some mistakes late. That’s just the way a tournament works — one goes on and another one has to lose.”
“We had a lead and we were trying to run some time off the clock,” Preece explained. “I just fooled around and lost the ball. They play hard-nosed defense.”
The Warriors created 23 turnovers with their relentless defense while playing in a rare diamond press, a strategy employed for only the second time all season, according to Chapman.
“I don’t think they were prepared for it,” Chapman said.
“Wyoming East’s pressure is very intense,” said Thompson. “They have a way of getting a deflection and a steal. When that happens, it can get away from you real quick.”
Tug Valley walked away knowing that they could play with the top-ranked squad, Thompson said.
“Playing with them like we did is satisfying,” he stated. “Wyoming East has been here forever. They’re a good team and I’m sure that they’ll be here next year too.”
— E-mail: jworkman@register-herald.com
