Granger's Jose Cortez, right, and Edward Castro celebrate a win as their team edges Oroville 55-53 during state tournament play at the SunDome on Thursday. JEFF HALLER/Yakima Herald-Republic View all photos for this story.

Granger rallies from 10-point deficit in fourth
quarter to eliminate Oroville 55-53

By PAUL SHUGAR
YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC

The Oroville High School boys basketball team has to wonder what it takes to keep Granger from believing it can win.

The Hornets shot 60 percent from the field — 66.7 percent from 3-point range — to build a 10-point lead by halftime. Oroville guard Dustin Davis, who dropped 42 against Brewster earlier in the season, scored 19 of his game-high 24 points in the first quarter.

Spartans coach David Gibb just told his players to keep playing good defense at halftime.

“The fact they shot 60 percent and we shot (26.7) percent and we were down only 10 shows we were doing something right,” Gibb said. “So all I did was tell the guys to keep doing what they’re doing and our shots will start to fall.

“I didn’t know when, but I knew they’d eventually would start to fall.”

And even though Granger trailed by 10 going into the fourth quarter, Gibb’s team proved him to be prophetic. Spartan guard Armando Cortez hit two free throws with 14.7 seconds left in regulation to give Granger its first lead of the game and secure a 55-53 victory Thursday in the SunDome.

Suddenly the 53-41 loss to Bellevue Christian that bounced the Spartans to losers’ bracket on Wednesday seemed like it happened years ago.

“My heart felt like it was going about 1,000 beats per minute, but I just tried to block it all out and hit the shot,” said Armando Cortez, who was one of three Spartans to finish with six points. “I got a little luck when it hit the rim and fell in. It felt so good.”

Armando’s twin brother, Jose Cortez, who finished with seven points, offered congratulations that only a brother could offer as they walked into the locker room.

“It’s about time you hit your free throws,” Jose Cortez said. “You can’t hit them in practice, but at least you hit them when they counted.”

Armando Cortez’s two clutch shots capped a 21-9 fourth-quarter run to steal the win from the Hornets (16-10), who went into the fourth quarter with a 44-34 lead. Oroville’s seven turnovers in the fourth allowed Granger (16-10) to close the gap quickly and pull within one, 48-47, with 3:17 left.

Spartan forward Sean Golob, who scored 10 points, helped spark most of the turnovers in the fourth quarter when he offered a little coaching advice to Gibb during a timeout.

“I just knew with Edward (Castro) and Mario (Mengarelli) and all their speed that the man press would work because it worked all season,” Sean Golob said.

“I just knew we could pressure them enough to get a steal and that’s what happened.”

The move from a halfcourt man-to-man defense in the last five minutes paid off. After Oroville stretched its lead back to four, 53-49, with 1:37 left, two turnovers allowed Granger to tie the game back up at 53 and give the Spartans the ball with 47.3 left.

Playing for the last shot, Armando Cortez got to be hero when he was fouled with 14.7 seconds left. After he hit both his shots, Granger’s full-court pressure sealed the win as guard Edward Castro made a steal and ran out the clock.

Granger forward Eric Paul came off the bench to tie Sean Golob’s team high scoring effort with 10 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Oroville, which had four players average in double figures this season, had only two players in double figures with Tyson Oakes scoring 12.

Granger will play Winlock (17-9), who defeated Seattle Academy (12-11) 55-44, in a loser-out contest at 10:30 a.m. today. The Cardinals lost in the first round to White Swan 59-41, but Gibb has no doubt that his team has a legitimate shot of winning, moving on and earning a trophy.

The Spartans, who are 4-13 in state tournament play, have only placed once — eighth — after making it to the SunDome six times.

“We were picked to finish fifth in the SCAC West and we finished third,” said Gibb, who was so emotional after the win that he broke down in tears. “We weren’t expected to make state, but we made it here. We weren’t expect to hang with Bellevue Christian and we did. We weren’t supposed to win today and we did.

“Yeah, I think we’re going to get a trophy.”