Wesson's late layup lifts Wolf Pack, 61-59
| Saturday, Jan 17 2009 02:22 AM
Last Updated Friday, Mar 27 2009 01:40 PM
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Ridgeview's Kyrie Wilson (44) battles with Stockdale's Emmenuel Ossai for a rebound in the second period.
There was no doubt Travon Wesson was getting the ball.
He had spent Friday evening proving that Ridgeview boys basketball isn't all about its inside game, so when he drove down the baseline with three seconds left for a layup to give the Wolf Pack a 61-59 home victory against Stockdale, it was the perfect exclamation point.
"It was like winning a Valley championship or something," Wesson said. "Hopefully we'll win one this year."
If Ridgeview (11-5, 4-0 Southwest Yosemite League) does take the Division III Central Section championship in March, it'll be the first in school history. And junior center Kaylin Evans, the 6-foot-8, shot-blocking, dunking phenom, surely will be a big part of it.
But if a team should effectively take Evans out of the equation -- as Stockdale (9-9, 1-2) did for most of the first half with a 2-3 zone defense -- Ridgeview will have an answer.
The Wolf Pack hit nine 3-pointers, seven before halftime, and handled Stockdale's full-court pressure in the second half well enough to keep themselves in the game.
"Kaylin draws a lot of attention, so we've got to be able to do things and read what they're doing," Ridgeview coach Bobby Sharp said. "If they're doubling, then we're going to have the perimeter shot. Then hopefully, we could pull them out a little bit, which we did."
Wesson led the charge, draining three first-quarter 3s and finishing with 19 points, including the all-important drive late. Evans inbounded the ball to Wesson with 7.1 seconds left, and he spun to his right and found an open path to the basket.
"I told our freshman point guard (Shannon Edwards), 'Just make sure you get me the ball,'" Wesson said. "Not a mean thing, I just feel like I want the ball in my hands at the end of the game."
Chad Clark had 11 points, as did Evans to go with nine rebounds.
Stockdale used two second-half runs, a 10-0 spurt to erase a 40-31 deficit, and a 5-0 streak in the final minutes to pull even at 59, to stay in the game. Jordan Burris led the Mustangs with 15 points and 10 rebounds, and Andrew Garcia added 11 points.
"It is really gut-check time now," Stockdale coach Terence Hubbert said. "We're down two games in league, and there's still hope there."
But in the end Friday, it was Ridgeview's complete game that kept it perfect in the SWYL.
"We knew we'd have to play well to get them," Sharp said. "This was a very good high school basketball game."
