TARKANIAN BOYS: Colorado champ edges Gorman for title

In its first three attempts at winning the Tarkanian Classic title, Bishop Gorman's boys basketball team was turned away by some of the nation's top players.

It was Overland (Colo.) senior De'Ron Davis' turn to deny the Gaels on Saturday.

Davis, a 6-foot-10-inch Indiana commit, scored the go-ahead basket with four seconds remaining as host Gorman lost 58-56 to the defending Colorado 5A state champions in the final of the Platinum Division.

The Gaels lost in the title game to Mater Dei (Calif.) in the inaugural Tarkanian Classic in 2012 and fell in the semifinals each of the past two seasons.

"In four years, we're 12-4, which is great," Gorman coach Grant Rice said. "But with a national tournament like this, we're disappointed we didn't get the win, obviously.

"I'm proud of our guys. We fought, we played hard, we just didn't play as well as we could. Overland took us out of our game. They did a great job."

Charles O'Bannon led Gorman (7-2) with 23 points, and his bucket at the end of a battle in the lane for a loose ball tied the game at 56 with 19 seconds left.

Overland called timeout with 17 seconds on the clock and set up a play for Davis, who got loose on the low block. Davis took one dribble, spun and laid the ball in to give the Trailblazers a two-point lead.

Following a Gorman timeout, O'Bannon's jumper from the right wing came after the buzzer.

"We probably should have done one more trap just to speed them up a little bit," Rice said. "They set a screen to get the big guy open. It was a great screen."

Davis finished with 20 points and nine rebounds, and Overland teammate Jervae Robinson had 12 of his 16 points in the second half on the way to being named the tournament's Most Valuable Player.

Zach Collins had 15 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots for Gorman, and the Gonzaga signee matched Davis shot for shot during an action-packed, three-minute sequence to open the second half.

However, the Gaels committed 21 turnovers (15 after halftime) and were held without a field goal for a 6½-minute stretch in the second half as Overland used a 14-3 run to take a 49-46 lead.

Davis' putback with 4:30 remaining gave the Trailblazers a 56-50 lead before Gorman rallied late.

"It was a good battle," Rice said. "I felt like they slowed it down on us, and we don't want to play games in the 50s, and that's our fault. We shouldn't have let them slow us down like that.

"We need to pressure a little more on defense and try to make things happen."

Gorman went ahead 25-14 with five minutes left in the first half on O'Bannon's second 3-pointer of the game before Overland responded with an 8-0 run as Collins was on the bench with two fouls.

But O'Bannon's finshed off a fast break with 50 seconds to go, as Gorman took a 30-26 halftime advantage.

"We didn't play great in the first half, but we still controlled the first half," Rice said. "And in the second half, we just played their game. We played in a slow, halfcourt system, and they did a really good job."

Cheyenne 71, Clay County (Ky.) 67 — At Gorman, Kavon Williams had 24 points, and the Desert Shields held off the Tigers in the championship game of the Premier Division.

Williams scored 21 points in the second half and went 5-for-5 from the free-throw line late to preserve Cheyenne's lead.

Alahjan Banks had 11 of his 16 points in the first half, and William Federson scored all 12 of his points in the opening 16 minutes as Cheyenne led 34-33 at halftime.

Dewayne Alexander added 11 points for the Desert Shields.

Blake Smith led Clay County with 28 points, but was limited to two field goals in the second half. Trey Farmer scored 22 for the Tigers.

Faith Lutheran 71, Las Vegas 46 — At Gorman, Zach Friel had 18 of his 24 points in the first half, and the Crusaders routed the Wildcats in the third-place game of the Premier Division.

Luke Bergen finished with 15 points and made four 3-pointers in the second half, as Faith Lutheran outscored the Wildcats 38-22. Gary Tharaldson added 10 points for the Crusaders.

Marquise Raybon led Las Vegas with 22 points.

Clark 66, Pasadena (Calif.) 46 — At Gorman, Darius Jackson had 25 points, and the Chargers beat the Bulldogs in the third-place game of the Gold Division.

Jackson had 15 points in the second half on the way to making the all-tournament team.

Antwon Jackson scored 12 of his 14 points in the first half as Clark led 35-24 at the break. Trey Woodbury added 11 points for the Chargers.

Marc Howard led Pasadena with 18 points, and Ben Burgoyne scored 10.

Desert Pines 56, Cathedral (Calif.) 42 — At Gorman, Capri Uzan had a game-high 23 points, and the Jaguars overturned a three-point halftime deficit to beat the Phantoms in the Platinum Division.

Greg Floyd had eight of his 11 points in the second half, as Desert Pines outscored Cathedral 29-12.

Noah Fernando led Cathedral with 15 points. Avery Carter added 13 points for the Phantoms, who were held to only four field goals in the second half.

Durango 64, Villa Park (Calif.) 52 — At Faith Lutheran, Demetrius Valdez scored 10 of his 17 points in overtime to lift the Trailblazers over the Spartans in a Gold Division consolation game.

Valdez hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key with 2:44 to go in overtime to put Durango up 52-51, and the Trailblazers wouldn't trail again.

Valdez also hit two free throws with 6.4 seconds to go in regulation to tie the game at 47 and force overtime.

Jason Landman had 16 points and six rebounds, and Chase Ruiz added 13 points and five rebounds for Durango.

Evan Battey had 17 points and seven rebounds to lead Villa Park before fouling out with 1:36 to go in regulation.

Freshman Julien Franklin added 15 points, including 12 in the second half and overtime, for the Spartans.

Coral Academy 58, Adelson School 53 — At Faith Lutheran, Isaiah Spears had 18 points to lead the Falcons over the Lions in a Premier Division consolation game.

Ryan Djino added 15 points, and Kaleb Robinson scored 12 for Coral.

Adelson's Jake Buchman led all scorers with 25 points. Miles Hagen added 12 points for the Lions, and teammate Brandon Pappas scored 10.

Mars Area (Pa.) 63, Desert Oasis 50 — At Desert Oasis, John Castello had 23 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Fighting Planets over the Diamondbacks in a Select Division consolation game.

Aamondae Coleman had 20 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Diamondbacks. Drevin Cannon added 18 points for Desert Oasis.

John Muir (Calif.) 73, Liberty 56 — At Faith Lutheran, Hunter Woods had 18 points to lead the Mustangs over the Patriots in a Gold Division consolation game.

Cameron Burist scored 13 points to pace Liberty, which trailed 42-14 at the half.

Logan Koch added 12 points, and Kyle Thaxton scored 11 for the Patriots.

Fossil Ridge (Colo.) 90, Western 45 — At Faith Lutheran, Braxton Bertolette scored 48 points on 16 3-pointers as the Sabercats routed the Warriors in a Premier Division consolation game.

Kwan Carter led Western with 12 points. Anthony Dodson and Albert Avila each scored 10 for the Warriors.