Trojans headed to Final Four
by DEL DUDUIT Portsmouth Daily Times
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ATHENS -- Wayne Evans' drive with 4.4 seconds left in the game brought tears of joy to Portsmouth Coach Gene Collins--and tears of defeat to Chesapeake on Saturday.
Evans scored the game-winning bucket to propel the Portsmouth Trojans over Chesapeake 69-68 to win the boys high school Division III regional championship at the Convocation Center on the campus of Ohio University.
The Trojans (21-4) advance to the Final Four in Columbus for the first time since 1990.
"This is overwhelming," Collins said as he wiped tears from his eyes. "We had to overcome a lot to get here. This is a huge win for the program."
Chesapeake (25-2) took a 68-67 lead after Eric Kennedy made two free throws with 9.2 seconds left to play in the game.
"Our play was designed to go to Andrew (Bendolph)," Collins said. "But when he was denied the ball, we had to go to Wayne, and he came up big. I knew he had the lane, and when he hit that shot, man I was just relieved."
Evans, a six-foot-two junior, dribbled to his right, then crossed-over and saw an opening in the middle of the lane and went strong to the hoop.
"What was I thinking?" Evans responded. "I was thinking that I've never played in Columbus, and I wanted to go there. That's what I was thinking."
Evans finished the game with 19 points, including seven in the fourth quarter.
"I knew he could do it," Bendolph said of Evans. "I knew he could finish. They denied me the ball, and I had all the confidence Wayne could make it happen."
Bendolph, a five-foot-eleven senior, took over in the fourth quarter . He gave Portsmouth a 58-54 lead when he drove hard to the hole and put a soft touch on a floater. He then connected on a fade-away from 12 feet for the 60-54 lead.
"As a senior, I've been wanting this for a long time," Bendolph said. "I knew that I had to step up and have leadership. I just thank God for this." Bendolph finished the game with 22 points.
However, Chesapeake fought back after Kennedy banged in two 3-pointers to cut the deficit to 64-62 with 1:15 to play.
"They just would not go away without a fight," Collins said of Chesapeake. "They hit some big shots--no doubt. But we responded and made some big plays too."
Portsmouth jumped out and took a 15-7 lead in the first quarter, thanks to Dion McKinley's eight-point, four-rebound performance in the period.
McKinley finished the game with 17 points and 14 rebounds.
"That was our game plan--to go inside," McKinley said. "We knew they couldn't handle us down low in the post."
The Panthers, the No. 1 seed, responded as Austin McMaster lit the nets for 14 second-quarter points to cut the Trojan lead to 31-27 at the half.
"We knew they would make a run," Collins said. "We just had to be patient and stick to the game plan."
The game plan included balanced scoring in the third quarter, and McKinley scored six points, while Bendolph, Tre Underwood and Evans each had four points in the quarter.
Evans sparked Portsmouth with a steal and two free throws, and he followed that by diving for a ball and forcing a Chesapeake turnover . McKinley also got on the floor on the next trip and forced another Panther turnover.
"We just played with heart and got after it," McKinley said.
Portsmouth will face Cleveland Central Catholic (18-8) on Friday at the Jerome Schottenstein Center at 2 p.m. on the campus of The Ohio State Univesity for the chance to play for the Division III state title.
Portsmouth -- 15 16 18 20 -- 69
Chesapeake -- 7 20 17 24 -- 68
Portsmouth -- Whitley 1 0 3, Bendolph 6 10 22, Evans 5 8 19, McKinley 8 1 17, Underwood 3 0 6, Jordan 1 0 2.
Chesapeake -- Copley 7 4 20, Hintz 2 0 6, McMaster 10 3 23, C. Kennedy 3 1 7, E. Kennedy 2 4 10,.
3-pointers -- Portsmouth 2 (Whitley, Evans) Chesapeake 6 (Copley 2, Hintz 2, E. Kennedy 2).
Copyright 2011 Portsmouth Daily Times. All rights reserved.
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