Alex Glenn’s buzzer-beater gives Foss basketball 55-54 win over Steilacoom
It went down to the final buzzer, with the Foss High School boys basketball team ultimately coming out on top against the visiting Steilacoom Sentinels on Friday night, 55-54. Here are three takeaways from the Falcon’s big win in the SPSL 2A West.
ALEX GLENN CALLS GAME
The senior guard hadn’t made a shot from behind the arc in Friday night’s game until the final seconds of the game, when Glenn took an inbounds pass over the top, took two dribbles to beat the double team and launched the game-winning 3-pointer just before time expired.
He knew it was good as soon as the ball left his hand.
“I felt it, when it left my fingertips, I just knew it was going to be the one going in,” Glenn said. “I saw they were cheating and not trying to have me get the ball. So I just popped out and caught it. As soon as the defender stepped up, I just went around him and decided to shoot the ball. I had faith in myself and my teammates.”
Just moments before, Steilacoom’s Javaie Kelly hit the go-ahead 3-pointer for the Sentinels to give Steilacoom a 54-52 lead with under 20 seconds to go in the game.
“In the timeout, I just talked to my guys, told them we still have to have faith, we’re good,” Glenn said. “Everything we’re doing, all the practice we’re doing, all the hard work, all the 16’s, the running we did, it’s going to pay off right here.”
With the win, Foss moves to 4-1 in the SPSL 2A West.
“I think we’re rolling,” said Foss coach Josh Barsh. “Coming together as a team. I like that part. We continue to do that, the league is wide open for us. Defensively, we’re getting a lot better. That’s going to be our calling card. If we can do that, we give ourselves a chance. We’re in a really good position.”
JAZUAN KING COULD BE FALCONS’ BEST PLAYER
The 6-foot-1 junior forward finished with 14 points, all of which came in the first half, before an ankle injury slowed him down and limited his effectiveness in the second half.
Before that, King was attacking the rim and scoring in traffic through multiple defenders.
“I felt like he was our best player in the summer (league),” Barsh said. “He’s one of our guys who can score on the least amount of dribbles. He’s one of our tougher guys, stronger guys and can finish around the rim. If he can do that for us, it’ll help us a lot.”
Of course, there’s other players who could stake their claim for the ‘best player’ title, too, with Glenn finishing with a team-high 16 points and sparking Foss’ fourth-quarter run and Caleb McCorry scoring 13 points, including three 3-pointers for the Falcons.
DEVANE IS STEILACOOM’S TOP OPTION
Sentinels’ senior guard Isaiah Devane scored a game-high 18 points (10 coming from the free-throw line). He was also one of the top receivers on the football team before an injury cost him the second half of the season.
He’s a fluid guard who can beat defenders off the dribble and score with the floater or off the glass. Fellow senior guard Javaie Kelly finished with 11 points for the Sentinels.
