The boys basketball team (13-6, 4-0) beat Compton in a nail-biting 70-68 victory on Wednesday, January 15 to extend their Moore League winning streak to 54 games, including past seasons. Senior Kameron Murrell scored 23 points, senior Chris Sullivan scored 15 points, and junior KJ Feagin scored 14 points in a game that came down to the last 0.9 seconds.
“Compton was a really fast-paced team, so our game plan was to slow them down and get them to play a half court set,” said Murrell.
Poly did more than shut them down in the first quarter, where they quickly gained the lead with an And-one from junior Jordan Dallas, and back-to-back three-pointers from Murrell. Senior Jeff Calhoun’s steal that led to a crowd-roaring dunk from Sullivan ended the quarter with Poly leading 28-16.
In the second quarter, Compton stopped Poly’s momentum. The boys tried to push the lead with And-one plays from Murrell and Sullivan, but the quarter belonged to Compton with the score at halftime being 40-32.
“Throughout the whole year, we’ve had really tough third quarters. Teams we’ve played throughout the year have come back during the third quarter,” said Murrell. An And-one play from Compton and a technical foul called on Poly swayed the game in Compton’s direction. Poly responded with another three from Murrell (he would finish with five threes), baskets from Feagin and Sullivan and a defensive stop. Compton still owned the third quarter though it still ended 56-51, Jackrabbits.
Compton surged ahead, and with 4:20 minutes left in the last quarter, took the lead for the first time, 60-59. The game came down to the last 28 seconds when, with Poly leading 66-62, Compton fouled Feagin. Feagin showed robotic poise when he sunk both free throws.
“I thought, just gotta make the shot and put us in a position to win,” said Feagin.
[pullquote align=”center” speaker=”KJ Feagin”]I thought, just gotta make the shot and put us in a position to win.[/pullquote]
That should’ve sealed the deal, but Compton made a four point play with 13.3 seconds left. Compton again fouled Feagin, who sunk two more free throws. After Compton scored a quick basket, Poly held possession of the ball on an inbound play with 2.8 seconds to go and led by two points. The ball was inbounded to Murrell, whose momentum carried him out of bounds, his feet just millimeters off the line.
“I was just trying to hold myself until time ran out. We had to regroup as a team. It was kind of like the Millikan game,” said Murrell. The week before, Poly beat Millikan 72-70 when Millikan missed a tip-in with 1.6 seconds to go.
At 0.9 seconds, flashbacks from the Millikan game occurred when Compton missed the tip-in from the inbounds play for the Poly win.
Unfortunately, that effort alone will not earn Poly a win at Compton’s home court. In addition to the spirited fans, Poly will face an improved team on February 5th.
“They’ll be more comfortable with us, and probably attack us more,” said Calhoun.
In the meantime, the boys will try to extend their winning streak against the Lancers at Lakewood high school today.
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