In an apparent display of self-torture, the Wilson High School student section decided to sit still and not make any noise until their team scored 10 points.
It was a long wait – not just for teenagers, for anybody – but the kids had plenty to cheer in the end as the Rams made a huge fourth quarter comeback to beat the Foss Falcons, 38-35.
Tuesday’s win clinched at least a tie for the Narrows League 3A title for the Rams – and the team that could catch Wilson is Lincoln. The Rams have already twice defeated the Abes.
The crowd was quiet until the 4:53 mark in the second quarter when Jaiden Martin made a free throw for Wilson’s 10th point.
But Wilson (16-2 overall, 8-0 Narrows 3A) had a bigger problem than a quiet crowd: the Rams were struggling on offense and turning the ball over.
Foss slowly took control, building a 33-20 lead on Tevin Richmond’s buzzer-beating tip-in at the end of the third quarter.
That’s when Wilson got serious. The Rams went on a 15-0 run to start the fourth quarter, taking a 35-33 lead on a 3-pointer by Ben Matz with 2:28 to play.
“Coach said if we got three stops in a row, we’d have the game,” said Matz, a junior. “Luckily, we got five stops and big 3s down the stretch and sealed the game.”
That Matz was even on the floor was a surprise. The shooting guard was sick to his stomach and throwing up something other than 3-point shots.
“Right when I got home from school, I started feeling it,” Matz said. “I tried taking a nap, and I went to the Y to try and put up shots, but I went to the bathroom there and threw up. I came here, and at halftime, I threw up a couple of times.”
A Kevin Johnson putback gave Wilson a 37-34 lead, and the teams exchanged free throws to make it 38-35 with 20 seconds to play.
Foss’s Dezmyn Trent had a good look at a game-tying 3-pointer but missed.
Foss (11-5, 3-4) needs to finish third to advance to the district tournament. The Falcons are in fourth, one game behind Capital. Foss plays host to Capital in the regular-season finale on Feb. 8.
Wilson coach Dave Alwert didn’t even want to acknowledge that his team clinched at least a share of the Narrow League title.
“We might have – I just tell the kids we’re on a win streak, and we want to keep it going,” said Alwert, after Wilson’s eighth straight win. “Don’t do anything to hurt the streak.”
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