No lead is safe in the state championships. Just ask the Juneau-Douglas High School boys basketball team.
JDHS led by 19 points in the second quarter of their fourth-place semifinal game against West Valley High School Friday morning at the ASAA/First National Bank Alaska state tournament in Anchorage.
But late in the fourth quarter, that lead dwindled to just three, and the Crimson Bears had to hold on for dear life to secure a 59-52 win. The win allows JDHS to play one final time in Saturday’s fourth-place game against Colony, who won their game immediately following JDHS’ battle with West Valley.
The Crimson Bears took fourth place at the state tournament last season.
Senior Erik Kelly scored 19 points to go along with 12 rebounds, senior Kolby Hoover also scored 19 points and had seven rebounds and senior Kasey Watts came away with nine points and 11 rebounds.
West Valley senior Cornelius Mingo Jr. and sophomore Dylan Erhart scored 10 points apiece in the losing effort.
The Wolf Pack made a final surge with 30 seconds left when Mingo Jr. scored a putback that made it 55-52.
On the ensuing play, Kelly inbounded to Gammy Reyes, who, after taking two dribbles, fired a long pass upcourt to Watts, who gently laid the ball up to put JDHS back up five, all but ending the game.
“That provided us with the breathing room to help us relax a little bit,” JDHS coach Robert Casperson said. “But West Valley is too talented and has too much pride, they weren’t just going to roll over after a slow start. We knew they were going to battle back, and they did.”
JDHS went on a 14-2 run to begin the game and led 20-7 after the first quarter. Juneau took its 19-point lead midway through the second and led 32-21 at halftime.
West Valley went on a 9-3 run to open the third quarter, but key plays by Hoover helped the Crimson Bears maintain the lead. After an offensive rebound, the 6-foot-4 guard slipped behind the defense and scored a wide-open layup to put JDHS up 39-34 at the 2:30 mark. After a Noah Do basket, Hoover found a driving lane down the middle of the court and converted a three-point play to put JDHS up eight points.
“He’s putting a lot of pressure on the defense by attacking the basket,” Casperson said.
JDHS led by six or more points for most of the fourth quarter.
JDHS and West Valley had nearly identical shooting percentages at 40 and 37 percent, respectively.
It’s the second game in a row JDHS has shot a higher percentage than their opponent.
The Crimson Bears shot 41 percent in their loss Thursday to Dimond, who made 32 percent of its shots.
Colony got to the state fourth-place game (12:30 p.m. tipoff) after its 70-57 win over East Anchorage Friday morning. Colony and JDHS have not played one another this season.
The state championship game is Saturday at 7:45 p.m. at the Alaska Airlines Center. The state semifinal matchups include Wasilla vs. West Anchorage and Dimond vs. Chugiak.
• Contact sports reporter Nolin Ainsworth at 523-2272 or nainsworth@juneauempire.com.
