Brewer wins on bomb before the buzzer Leighton saves day in 2nd OT

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BANGOR – This wasn’t a Saturday morning basketball game so much as it was a war of attrition. And in this war, Brewer’s Jason Leighton fired the last shot.

With four seconds remaining in double overtime, the junior guard caught Nate Freeman’s inbounds pass from the end line, dribbled twice, and shot a 50-foot prayer from behind the halfcourt line that was answered when the ball swished through the net at the buzzer.

“The Shot” gave No. 4 Brewer’s cardiac kids an 85-84 Eastern Maine Class A quarterfinal victory over No. 5 Mt. Blue of Farmington at the Bangor Auditorium.

The 14-5 Witches will take on 19-0 Bangor at 7 p.m. Friday.

Rather than fold after center Jon Zarecki (20 points) fouled out with 2:53 left in the second overtime, the Cougars went on a 5-0 run. With 2:11 to play and Mt. Blue up 80-75, the Witches looked like someone had thrown water on them and left them for dead.

But after a Brewer timeout, sophomore forward Adam King breathed life back into the Witches.

King hit one of two foul shots with 1:57 left and Brewer’s Jon Thomas rebounded King’s missed second shot and hit him on the left wing with a quick pass.

King uncorked a 21-foot bank shot that fell through the hoop, and the Cougars’ lead was cut to one.

Brewer junior forward Troy Leavitt answered a Mt. Blue hoop with a basket from the lane and later pulled the Witches even at 82-all after hitting the second of two foul shots with 40 seconds to go.

With 23 seconds left, Witch Randy Billings fouled out. Nineteen seconds later, Leavitt also left the game after fouling Ryan Fortier.

Although Billings and Leavitt combined for 17 points and eight rebounds, the fouls may have been their biggest contributions as the Cougars converted only two of the four shots – giving Brewer a glimmer of hope with four seconds left.

The Witches then called timeout.

“We wanted to see what defense they were going to play. We expected them to pressure us on the baseline. If so, we were going to call timeout,” said Leighton.

But the Cougars backed off, so Leighton improvised.

“That was absolutely nothing like we diagrammed it. It just kind of went awry,” said Savage. “I’d rather be lucky than good sometimes.”

Four seconds later, Leighton was at the bottom of an orange-and-black pile of deliriously happy people.

“When it went in, I was just standing there and everybody jumped on me,” said Leighton. “I was praying they’d get off me because I couldn’t breathe under there.”

King and Jared Seavey, who fouled out early in the first overtime, led Brewer with 18 points each. Leighton finished with 13 and Thomas had 10.

Fortier led the 11-8 Cougars with 33 points. Zarecki had 20 points and 10 rebounds. Mt. Blue starters Dustin Ireland and Jim Ross also fouled out late in the game.

Witches 85, Cougars 84 (2OT)

Mt. Blue boys Brewer

Name G AG F AF TP Name G AG F AF TP

Ranger 1 1 0 0 2 Freeman 1 1 3 4 5

Ireland 3 4 1 7 7 Billings 1 5 6 6 8

Fortier 10 25 12 16 33 King 4 8 7 8 18

Ross 1 6 0 0 2 Leavitt 4 10 1 2 9

Oliveira 2 2 1 2 5 Leighton 3 12 6 6 13

Roberts 1 5 4 8 6 Seavey 6 9 4 8 18

Myrick 0 0 0 0 0 Thomas 4 9 2 5 10

Baylis 3 6 1 2 8 Somes 0 1 0 0 0

McLaughlin 0 2 1 2 1 Hinckley 0 1 0 0 0

Zarecki 10 16 0 0 20 Johnston 2 2 0 1 4

Totals 31 67 20 37 84 Totals 25 58 29 40 85

Mt. Blue 17 29 47 62 73 84

Brewer 11 34 51 62 73 85

3-pt. goals: Mt. Blue (2-8): Fortier 1-2, Baylis 1-3, Ross 0-2, Zarecki 0-1; Brewer (6-12): Billings 0-1, King 3-6, Leighton 1-1, Seavey 2-3, Thomas 0-1