Tie game, 15 seconds remaining, capacity crowd at Boys & Girls on its feet – it was the perfect time for Jaquan (Son Son) Lynch to further cement himself as one of the city’s top guards.
Just one problem: the ball never found its way into Lynch’s capable and clutch hands. Instead of the sweet-shooting Lynch, point guard Nazai Stokes drove the lane, only he lost the handle and moments later the Kangaroos were celebrating Leroy (Truck) Fludd’s game-winning layup as time expired in an 86-84 overtime victory.
“That’s upsetting,” Jefferson coach Lawrence (Bud) Pollard said. “We’re up four with a minute left in overtime and we’re up three with a few seconds left [in regulation] and we can’t get the job done. We don’t have anyone but ourselves to blame. We have to execute down the stretch.
Neither Pollard nor Lynch (game-high 31 points) faulted Stokes, who was impressive in his own right with 12 points. His three-point play, in fact, gave Jefferson (9-5) an 82-78 lead with 1:50 left in overtime. Pollard considered calling timeout, but didn’t want to give Boys & Girls the opportunity to set up its defense.
“Next time we run into something like that, it will be very different,” said Lynch, who also had 10 rebounds and five assists. Jermoine Faison added 14 points and Mike Watson Jr. had 11.
It was another frustrating ending for the Orange Wave, which has hung with three of the city’s top teams – Boys High, Lincoln and Christ the King – but has fallen short on each occasion. Tuesday was its best opportunity, Jefferson leading by eight points late in the first quarter, never trailing by more than six and holding leads in the final minute of regulation and overtime.
Jefferson, however, failed to make that final play, whether it was grabbing a rebound on Wesley Myers’ errant 3-point in the final seconds of regulation – Fludd did and set up Bryce Jones for the overtime-forcing 3-pointer – or making sure to get the final shot in overtime.
As has been the case for much of the year, Jefferson was without star senior Thaddeus Hall – Pollard suspended him for missing practice last week – and Lynch did much of the heaving lifting. The talented junior poured in those 31 points and pulled Jefferson even at 70 late in regulation with a top-of-the-key 3-pointer, his fifth from beyond the arc. That made the final possession that much more frustrating for Pollard.
“He’s got to get the ball in his hands,” the coach said. “Right now, he’s the best guard in the city – nobody’s been better.”
That was of little solace to Lynch on Tuesday evening. He’s tired of playing well in defeat. He thinks he knows the key to beating the top teams.
“I don’t know why, but I think its Thaddeus Hall,” Lynch said of the senior Pollard said would play Thursday against Grady. “He’ll be the answer. With him on the court, who will be able to stop us?”