Arthur’s clutch triple powers Green Valley girls over Basic

Green Valley’s Rebecca Arthur was in a shooting slump when she found herself with the ball in the closing seconds of a key Southeast League game against Basic on Monday night.

Once the sophomore’s 3-pointer from the left corner sailed through the hoop with 3.2 seconds remaining, she suddenly was the hottest player on the team. 

Arthur’s basket proved to be the winner, and the Gators escaped with a dramatic 51-48 road win over the Wolves.

The win nearly guaranteed a playoff berth for Green Valley (15-10, 7-5 Southeast), while eliminating Basic (12-8, 5-7) from postseason contention.

"I was kind of nervous,” Arthur said of her only basket. “But once I got the ball, I just trusted myself.”

Although the Gators set up an inside play during a timeout, the lane was unavailable and the ball was kicked out to Arthur. Gators coach Eric Johnston, whose team rallied from a nine-point third-quarter deficit, said he never doubted the shot would fall.

“Rebecca’s been in a slump for the past two or three games,” the coach said. “But I had 100 percent faith in her. I didn’t even think twice about it.”

Kailai Brantner tried to tie it for Basic, but her desperation 30-footer at the buzzer was off the mark.

Jill Harland led Green Valley with 18 points and eight rebounds. Angelica Mack supplied 11 points and 12 rebounds, and Maggie Manwarren had 10 points.

The Gators can secure a playoff berth with a victory at Tech on Wednesday.

Green Valley owned the paint in the first quarter, grabbing a 12-3 lead on a layup by Mack with 1:24 left in the period.

But the Wolves chipped away, tying the score at 18 late in the second quarter on a driving layup by Brantner and taking a 25-22 lead into halftime.

Basic maintained momentum early in the second half, stretching the lead to 38-29 on Brantner’s 6-footer.

But Harland, who scored 14 points in the second half, opened the fourth quarter with two quick baskets and helped the Gators complete a 7-0 run to take a 47-43 lead with 3:17 to play.

“At times, we’ve lost faith in each other this year,” Johnston said. “I think it might have finally clicked tonight.”

The Wolves battled back and tied it at 48 on Kelsey Gunther’s 3-pointer and Jeslyn Gibbs’ two free throws with 2:42 left. The teams exchanged turnovers and missed free throws down the stretch until Arthur buried the winning shot.

Brantner led the Wolves with 11 points and three steals. Gibbs and Marissa Ross each added 11 points.