Windward Boys Fall in CIF Finals

Leading by three points heading into the fourth quarter of Wednesday night's Southern Section Division 4AA championship game, the Windward High boys' basketball team had the momentum and was poised to win the school's second CIF title in a span of three hours.

However, despite a remarkable effort by 6' 6" senior wing Wesley Saunders, the Wildcats came up short in their bid to join the girls' team as section champions. Top-seeded Orange Lutheran made big shots down the stretch and held on for a 78-71 victory at the Anaheim Convention Center.

The Wildcats had possession, trailing 74-69 with 26.8 seconds left when Luke Silverman-Lloyd inbounded the ball to Saunders, who backed into the low post, spun and attempted a layup. The ball rolled off the rim, Orange Lutheran got the rebound and Lancers guard James Douglas was fouled. Douglas made both free throws to give Orange Lutheran a 76-69 lead with 19.5 seconds remaining.

"I was the first option on that play and I work on that move all the time," Saunders said. "That's a shot I normally make." 

After Charles Dawson's three-point try was too strong, Orange Lutheran's Scott Baron was intentionally fouled and sank both shots to increase the Lancers' lead to 78-69 with 7.9 seconds left. Instructed not to foul by Coach Chris Nordstrom, Orange Lutheran allowed Jordan Wilson a concession layup as the final seconds ticked off the clock.

"I tip my hat to them," Windward Coach Miguel Villegas said. "They got off to a fast start and we had to exert a lot of energy to catch up. In championship games you have to expect the unexpected and at the end of the game they made some huge shots when we had them defended pretty well."

It was the second consecutive defeat in a section final for the second-seeded Wildcats (23-9), who lost the Division 5AA championship game by one point to La Verne Lutheran last season. 

"Mistakes in the beginning are what cost us," said Nick Stover, who finished with 19 points and 12 rebounds. "We did much better in the second half and felt like we had control of the game but you never want to fall behind like that."

Early on, it looked like Orange Lutheran would run away with the title early as the Lancers (25-6) raced to a 24-6 lead seven minutes into the game. However, the Wildcats pulled to within 42-32 by halftime.

Windward opened the third quarter on a 8-2 run and took its first lead, 52-51, on Stover's offensive rebound and basket with 34 seconds left in the third quarter. Dawson made a layup on the Wildcats' next possession and Saunders swatted Douglas' three-point attempt out of bounds at the buzzer.

Saunders played all 32 minutes, finishing with 24 points, 13 rebounds, five assists, five blocks and two steals. Dawson had 11 points and Silverman-Lloyd added nine on three three-pointers for Windward, which lost the rebounding battle 35-30.

"Seeing the girls win right before our game definitely inspired us," Saunders said. "They came out to support us and we really wanted to win too. Hopefully, we can both get a win at the state tournament."