Loughlin Overthrows Royals in OT
MIDDLE VILLAGE, NY - When the big moment hits it becomes time for the big stars to make the big plays and on Sunday afternoon both Christ the King and Bishop Loughlin's main stars more than lived up to the billing in a game that took OT to decide.
It was a game that saw neither team at their best for the first 3 quarters, but come crunch time it was as close to a classic as you will find. Jose Alvarado '17 fought through a late game back injury to hit back to back threes in the overtime session, but Markquis Nowell '18 countered proving to be more than up to the challenge.
The difference proved to be a big defensive stop late for the Lions as paced by Nowell and Keith Williams '17, Bishop Loughlin were able to win at Christ the King for the second straight year, this time taking a 66-62 overtime victory.
While it was a game that wasn't decided until the closing seconds, Bishop Loughlin head coach Ed Gonzalez always remained confident in his group to get the job done saying that when you have Williams and Nowell on your side, you always believe you will ultimately come out on top.
"They are tremendous. I have said it before but I think they are the 2 best guards in the city, and they continue to prove it," Gonzalez said about his dynamic duo. "They live for the big shots and the big moments like this and they relish this opportunity."
The opportunity in front of the Lions was a chance to beat Christ the King in Queens for a second straight season, and from the opening tip you knew it was going to be a barn burner.
For the most part it was a sloppy game through 3 quarters as both teams struggled from the FT line, while also not able to finish their chances around the rim. Both sides noted that it wasn't the best play for a good stretch of the contest, but when push came to shove when the game was in doubt, both teams came alive.
Christ the King took a 25-19 lead at the half, a halftime score that was well below the season average for both teams, and while Loughlin were able to come back on the back of a good shooting 3rd quarter from Williams to take a 36-33 lead going into the 4th, it was still anyone's game as both teams were looking close the game out strong.
As the 4th quarter began you could tell there was a different energy from both teams, with their stars significantly stepping up as Alvarado opened the final stanza with a slash going through the entire Lions defense, while Williams would step up and finish on a nice step back jumper over Royals big man Kofi Cockburn '19.
Cockburn himself though would come alive with a pair of dunks after catching the ball and making a move down low. It was back and forth with both teams trading blows, though with 2:39 in the game, and Bishop Loughlin up 52-47 it seemed like everything would be about to change.
Alvarado was going up for a rebound and came down hard, though it was made worst when Lions big man Chad Venning '19 came down on top of him, landing on his back which made Alvarado roll over on the floor writhing in pain.
The Georgia Tech bound lead guard was able to get up and walk off the court under his own power but he was walking gingerly and clearly in some sort of pain. He was on the bench for just over a minute of game time before there Alvarado was, still clearly shaken up, coming back on the court.
He may not have been 100% but Christ the King head coach Joe Arbitello was not going to keep his leader off the floor if he wanted back on.
"Jose wants to win the game," Arbitello stated. "He said he wanted back in the game so I put him in the game."
With Alvarado back in, he instantly made an impact as he fed Tyson Walker '18 on the wing for a three, and after a steal, Alvarado once again found a cutting Walker who got fouled while going to the rim. He would calmly step up with 46 seconds to play and knock down his 2 FT's to tie the game up at 54.
Both teams had their chances in the final seconds of the to win the game but Tyrese Gaffney '17 missed on a drive going down the right side, and then with time running out, Walker missed a contested finish in the lane that could've won it for the Royals, instead though sending the game into overtime.
If the stars were big in the 4th, they were huge in the OT session as Alvarado right out the gate knocked down a three from the left side, but not to be outdone, Nowell would can one of his own to re-tie the game up. They traded three balls once again to tie the game up at 60, and while it may have been a lot of pressure in that moment, Nowell said he was not about to let his coach, and his team, down.
"The first one I felt it because Keith got me the ball and I was like if I get it then it's going to go in," Nowell said with a smile. "Coach didn't want to lose this one and we didn't want to lose it for him."
Christ the King took the lead right back after Alvarado went 1 of 2 from the FT line with 47.3 seconds to go, but then Williams got a feed from Nowell on the other end, and with two defenders coming at him, was able to drain a three to put Loughlin up 63-61, a shot that everyone with Loughlin knew could be the finishing touch.
To the credit of Alvarado, he wouldn't let anything, be it his injury or double teams, affect him late as he got himself to the FT line again with a chance to tie, but he could only hit 1 of 2. Nowell was immediately fouled with 17.3 to go with Christ the King hoping to extend the game, and he was only 1 of 2 giving the Royals hope to once again tie up the game, or possibly take the lead.
Arbitello called a timeout to set up a play with just 3.6 seconds left, but it was a huge defensive play from Nowell who while more known for his offensive qualities, came up with a huge defensive play that he knew put the game to bed.
"I knew he was going to go right so I had to tip it out of his hand and luckily it went off his leg," Nowell said about the final defensive stand and what he was able to do on the play.
Nowell was fouled with just over 1 second left but he sank his pair of free throws to put the game away for good as Bishop Loughlin were the ones able to celebrate as time expired, knocking off Christ the King for the 66-62 victory.
It was Williams with 25 points and Nowell with 22 points to lead the way for Bishop Loughlin who after a tough 1 point loss at St. Raymond's on Friday came back with a statement making win over the Royals and one Williams feels proves they can beat anyone when they both are going good.
"Right now, I think Markquis and I are the best backcourt in the league and even the country and when we are doing our thing I think we are unstoppable," Williams said.
While they weren't able to take the win, Christ the King did learn a lot about themselves as a team according to Arbitello.
Alvarado had 23 points to pace the Royals, and Walker added 18 points, but it was the fact that they never quit as a team that has Arbitello feeling as if his CK group came of age today.
"I feel like we turned the corner and we grew up today. You know as a coach that your guys aren't physically there yet, and today I think today they grew up a bit and figured out how to play for 32 minutes," Arbitello admitted.
He added that he felt that if the Royals do make a deep playoff run that they will look back to this Sunday in January as to the day where they turned the corner to make that possible.
This may have been the day that Christ the King matured into a dangerous team the rest of the way, but it was the day that Bishop Loughlin put the CHSAA on notice that regardless of the circumstance, they will not back down as Williams and Nowell will never allow that to happen.
It now ends what Gonzalez called a grueling stretch of games for his Lions group, and while now game is ever easy going on the road on Friday and Sunday to play St. Raymond and Christ the King is something that he says he will never do again.
Now it's all about resting up now and looking back on what he calls a successful last few games against some of the best, proving to all they were once again a title contender in the CHSAA this season.
"I won't make the schedule like that again because we had 5 games in 8 days. It was brutal and they came and they responded. They will now have Monday off and hopefully they have a good time off tomorrow, I know I will now."
