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BANGOR – Statistically speaking, 3-for-19 isn’t much different from 4-for-20. However, when that 20th shot is a game-winning, eight-foot jumper at the buzzer in overtime, it makes all the difference.
Hampden Academy senior sharpshooter Derek Rodgerson capped a forgettable shooting night with the game’s most memorable shot to give the Broncos a 50-48 victory over John Bapst of Bangor Thursday night.
“They played pretty good defense, but I was cold,” said a sheepish Rodgerson, who still managed 10 points and six rebounds. “As long as the last one goes in, I guess that’s something.”
After Owen Caron took the inbounds pass from the left sideline with 4.7 seconds left in OT, he had no good shot. So he passed to Rodgerson, who dribbled around heavy traffic in the high post, pulled up in front of and impromptu Caron screen, and nailed the jumper.
“Derek was cold, but he’s the kind of kid who’s going to keep playing his game and it was good to see him get that one at the end,” said coach Andy Frace, whose Broncos improved to 3-1. “If they’re shooters, they’re shooters, and you have to keep encouraging them.”
Speaking of keep doing it, the loss was the third straight for the 1-4 Crusaders, their fourth by three points or less, and the second straight via a shot at the buzzer.
“I feel bad for our kids. We could be 5-0 as well as 1-4. You just tell them, `Hey, that’s life. You just have to pick up the belt and go the next day,’ ” said Crusaders coach Bob Cimbollek.
Bapst looked poised to put an end to its run of tough luck several times in the final five minutes. Senior forward Tim Mathien put in a shot from the low post to make it 42-39 with one minute left in regulation, but Rodgerson then came to life with a 3-pointer from the middle 36 seconds later.
Tight man-to-man by Hampden forced Bapst to take two more timeouts after Cimbollek called one to set up a final shot in the last 14 seconds. After the last one, HA’s Jesse McCue stole a pass and flipped the ball ahead to Caron, who took a 3-pointer from the left wing which missed as time ran out.
Bapst had two more good chances in OT, but went 2-for-5 from the line. After McCue converted a three-point play to make it 48-45 Hampden with 1:36 left, Mathien (17 points, 13 rebounds, two blocks) did the same to tie it with 1:25 to go.
With five seconds left, Rodgerson drove to the lane and laid one up, but the ball rolled around and out. Caron (seven points, nine rebounds) and Mathien both grabbed the ball as the whistles blew and a jump-ball was called – Possession arrow: Broncos.
Point guard Jason Estes made up for Rodgerson’s subpar night with 12 points and took care of the ball as Hampden committed eight turnovers to Bapst’s 17.
“I just think everybody’s got to get it in their mind that our team isn’t just Derek,” said Estes. “If he’s not shooting well, that’s not the end of our team. Everyone on our team can play.”
Despite an 11-0 advantage in fouls in the first half, Bapst was unable to fully exploit its edge, going 18-for-27 from the line.
Conversely, Hampden went 10-for-13 from the line to help survive a 32 percent shooting night from the floor (19-for-60).
Broncos 50, Crusaders 48 (OT)
Hampden Acad. (3-1) John Bapst (1-4)
Name G AG F AF TP Name G AG F AF TP
DiFrederico 0 4 0 0 0 Payne 2 5 5 7 9
Estes 4 10 4 4 12 Kirkpatrick 4 13 3 6 11
Rodgerson 4 20 1 2 10 Day 1 5 2 2 4
McCue 2 7 1 1 6 Mathien 6 11 5 8 17
Carson 2 4 0 0 4 Owen 2 3 3 4 7
Caron 2 10 3 4 7 Baldus 0 0 0 0 0
Keller 1 1 0 0 2 Russell 0 0 0 0 0
McBee 3 3 1 2 7
Russell 0 0 0 0 0
Burke 1 1 0 0 2
Totals 19 60 10 13 50 Totals 15 37 18 27 48
Hampden Academy 8 18 30 42 50
John Bapst 6 14 24 42 48
3-pt. goals: Hampden Academy (2-13): McCue 1-4, Rodgerson 1-5, DiFrederico 0-1, Caron 0-1, Estes 0-2; John Bapst (0-1): Payne 0-1
Attendance: 358
Preliminary: John Bapst 60-52
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