The winning shot…Troy Christian junior Noah Zecher launches over Miami East’s Nolan Crane, a three-point bucket that banked in from the deep corner to hand the Eagles a 53-50 overtime win. (Press Pros Feature Photos)
Troy Christian junior Noah Fecher finished off his biggest night of the season with a precious memory…a Divinely-willed three pointer to beat Miami East in overtime, 53-50.
Troy, OH – After it was over Troy Christian coach Ray Zawadzki, Jr. found it hard to talk about.
There just weren’t words for how his Eagles had managed to beat Miami East Tuesday night in an overtime finish…with a Heaven-sent three-pointer from the corner – at the buzzer – to win, 53-50!
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And, he really didn’t want to say much about the game’s ragged first half in which the Eagles (15-5, 10-3 in TRC) sleep-walked through 16 minutes of basketball, allowing Miami East too many wide-open looks from three-point range and uncontested rebounds.
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Both can, and will get you beat if you do it for four quarters.
But thankfully, junior Noah Fecher took it upon himself to have some big moments and hit some big shots…none bigger than the corner three-pointer with a second remaining in overtime at game’s end that actually banked in – an almost impossible angle from where he shot the ball. Something, if you’re old enough to remember, trick shot artist Willie Mosconi used to do with the eight ball in the side pocket.
“I just came out of the huddle saying, ‘Lord, if you want me to have this shot give it to me,'” Fecher said later. “I got the pass from Riston (Taylor), shot goes up in one motion…game over.”
Divine! It had to be. Because everyone knows that at 8:48 on a Tuesday evening in Troy the banks are closed, even at a Christian school.
It set off a dog-pile celebration with his teammates which Fecher witnessed lying flat on his back, as one by one the Miami East players (7-11, and 5-6 in TRC) trudged past shaking their heads. It was no way to lose an up-and-down game in what had already been an up-and-down season, and suffering their second loss to Troy Christian (47-39, back in December).
Miami East’s Luke Fulton scores off an offensive rebound over Troy Christian’s Riston Taylor in the first quarter.
But credit to Dan Hickman’s Vikings, , too, who came to play, much to the angst of Zawadzki. East came out firing from the opening tip, cashing in from three-point range when the Eagles were slow to contest those wide-open shots. And shots they missed, the Vikes were first to get to for the 50-50 balls, and offensive rebounds, denying Troy Christian opportunities for fast break points at the other end.
The Vikings led 16-10 after the first quarter and maintained that lead throughout most of the second quarter…until TC scored the last five points before the break on a Brennan Hochwalt bucket and a three-pointer from the corner…you guessed it…by Fecher as the horn sounded. It cut East’s locker room lead to 22-21.
“The first quarter was not typical basketball for us,” said Zawadzki. “I was pretty upset because you know when you play Miami East you have to come ready to compete. One of their strengths is their physical style of play and effort level, and they’re coached very well. So we weren’t prepared mentally to play. It took that first quarter to wake us up, and we never really did get going. We had to battle all game, and it was a struggle.”
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The Eagles, admittedly, live and die by the three-point shot, and Tuesday they almost died by it, shooting a discouraging 6 of 22 (27%) from behind the arc, and a lot of those shots were hurried in transition, and questionable in light of a pass for a closer, more high-percentage attempt.
“But we shoot the three a lot,” smiled Zawadzki. “We’re averaging nine three-pointers a game, so we believe in the three-point shot. We want the kids to take that shot and I think sometimes we’ve turned into the Boston Celtics.”
Noah Fecher had a night…a team-high 18 points and a pair of buzzer beaters – a three-pointer (above) to finish the first half, and one to finish the game.
To their credit, TC played better in the second half, matching East’s effort on both ends while still not shooting the three-point shot that well. Of their six made for the night, Fecher had four of them, finishing with a team-high 18 points. Sundry others clanked off the rim for long rebounds gathered in by East. And long rebounds off three-point attempts often become fast break points at the other end.
But the Eagles did a much better job in transition defense, forcing East to play in the half court, and into some inopportune turnovers. The third quarter was a slugfest, ten points by each team, including a three-pointer by Fecher and a pair of buckets by the Eagles’ Riston Taylor, who eventually finished with just 9 for the game.
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For East, Luke Fulton was making his way to a game-high 19 points, connecting on a trio of three-pointers…and when the Eagles gave him a step he put the ball on the floor and attacked the rim successfully. He would finish 7 for 14 from the field, and 2 of 4 from the foul line. He and the Vikings led 32-31 at the start of the fourth quarter.
TC opened the fourth with a three-pointer by Austin Stangel and a 5-0 run to jump out, 36-32.
One that got away…TC’s Brennan Hochwalt watches a loose ball roll downcourt during Tuesday’s overtime win over Miami East.
East answered, tying the score at 40-40 with three minutes left in regulation, the overture to a back-and-forth conclusion.
Troy Christian missed a pair of open opportunities when Taylor clanked a three attempt and Hochwalt muffed a wide-open layup on a backdoor cut at the 2:12 mark.
But East turned the ensuing possession over and Troy Christian retook the lead at 1:30 on with a layup by Stangel, 42-40.
East again answered with a three-pointer by Keidin Pratt, 43-42; and then added to their lead, 44-42, splitting a pair of free throws by Colton Vogel. That missed free throw turned out to be costly.
Because on the ensuing possession Troy Christian turned the ball over under their own basket with 18 seconds left in the game…only to steal East’s inbound pass attempt. The ball somehow found TC’s Gabriel Wilkins standing under the rim, who picked it up and tied the score at 44-44. East had one shot left, and missed a corner three to send the game to overtime.
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The lead changed hands twice in the final four minutes…the Eagles scoring on a bucket by Hochwalt and a bucket and a pair of free throws by Austen Taylor
East scored on a bucket and free throw by Brody Antonides, and a three-pointer by Luke Fulton to tie the score at 50-50. Troy Christian got the ball inbounds for the final possession and called a timeout with five seconds left on the clock.
Ray Zawadzki, St. studies the flight of the winning shot in overtime by Troy Christian’s Noah Fecher.
The inbounds pass found its way into the hands of Riston Taylor, a dangerous shooter who East must have presumed would take the final shot. Taylor was immediately covered, and skipped the pass to Fecher standing alone in the corner…and in one motion he caught it, rose, and launched a high-arching shot over East’s Nolan Crane.
It looked funny as it descended – a bit offline – as if it might hit the side of the bankboard. But instead, it grazed the glass just enough to swirl into the basket as the horn sounded. Game over…53-50, Troy Christian!
Things were a little nutty for a second. Fecher stared at his teammates pouring out on the floor as if he had seen a ghost, or at least something unimaginable.
“It’s all you dream for as a little kid,” Fecher said later. “The ball comes down the sideline, one pass from Riston, the ball goes up…game over. A buzzer beater.”
Sitting right behind Fecher in the first row of seats as he took the shot was Ray Zawadzki, Sr., the venerable one. His expression never changed as he followed the flight of the ball to the rim – never changed when it went through. He just nodded as the horn sounded. He’d seen it before…decades’ worth. One more never hurt.
Thanks to the Lord. And Noah Fecher.
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