Montbello tops East in double OT

Alan Pearce, Rocky Mountain News

Published February 18, 2007 at midnight

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The most-anticipated game in the Denver Prep League this season had more than a title on the line.

First, there was the father-son coaching dynamic of Rudy Carey at Denver East and David Carey, who played for Rudy, now at Montbello. As for the players, several who looked like goats became heroes and some of them made more mistakes again.

The game’s import was signified by East’s No. 2 ranking in Class 5A basketball and Montbello’s No. 7 and a full house at the Thunderdome.

There was the unreasonably early start time, 10:30 a.m. Saturday, because this showdown, and all games in fact, was supposed to be completed by Friday, according to the rules of the Colorado High School Activities Association.

Bad planning still couldn’t deter good basketball, though.

Although East seemed to have the game well in hand several times, Montbello staged a thrilling comeback and toppled the Angels 82-79 in double overtime. The Warriors had lost a heartbreaker a couple weeks ago at Lincoln, but have looked strong in the crucial stretch run.

"At times, we get away from doing what we’re supposed to do, but me and my coaching staff and I are constantly on these kids about discipline, playing team ball, playing smart," David Carey said. "We got our backs up against the wall and we kept fighting."

Montbello’s star forward counts himself as a David Carey disciple.

"Coach always tells us, ‘Championship teams don’t lose and go downhill,’" senior Anthony Porch said. "Championship teams bounce back. Ever since (the Lincoln game), we’ve been moving on up."

Montbello’s win lifted it to a record of 20-3 overall, 7-1 league. East dropped to 19-3, 7-1.

It’s been so long since the Warriors beat East that nobody seems certain when it last happened, but David Carey said it might have been 1990.

Saturday’s upset, David’s first win against Rudy, meant a three-way tie for the DPL title. However, Lincoln, which lost to East but beat Montbello, has a so-so nonleague record. But the Lancers dropped to Class 4A this season and should therefore get a very good seed din tomorrow’s bracket announcement at the ESPNZone downtown.

Montbello players celebrated their win over East joyously, perhaps because their early 4-2 lead evaporated and they had a game-long struggle to regain that edge.

Halfway through the fourth quarter, East was clinging to a 63-59 lead. The Warriors seemed to be in deep trouble when Alphonzo McDonald fouled out and then was slapped with a technical foul.

East’s Donell Wells sank both free throws, but Littlejohn rallied the Warriors with an impromptu speech at the Montbello sideline.

"He’s a great leader and the backbone of this team," Hairston said of Littlejohn.

Littlejohn then drove inside for a short jumper, followed by a Hairston basket and a Porch tip-in of his own miss. Seemingly out of contention, the Warriors took a lot smarter shots than East and tied it up 65-65.

Montbello finally took the lead again with 1:14 left in regulation, when Porch canned an 8-foot turnaround jumper.

Even then, East sent the game into overtime when Kenneth Gilbert dropped in a layup with a little less than a minute remaining in the fourth quarter.

Angels forward Demetrius Thornton, who missed a lot of time early in the season rehabilitating from knee surgery, made a key play by blocking Josh Littlejohn’s shot. But Thornton also missed the front end of a one-and-one with 17.5 seconds left, which might have given East a regulation victory.

In the first overtime, Littlejohn hit a 16-footer for the first basket, but a Gilbert layup and his assist to Jordan Martinez evened it up at 72-72.

Another Littlejohn basket and Gilbert answer occurred in the second overtime, but the Warriors had the advantage because guard Quincy Hairston had two free throws, a 17-footer and two more foul shots.

Hairston finished with 16 points and he went an impressive 10-for-10 from the foul line.

East was trailing 80-79 when Wells suddenly hoisted up a three-point try with seven seconds left to play.

Montbello was able to rebound and get another pair of free throws to win the game.

Losing obscured another great performance by Angels reserve forward Jordan Martinez, who also starred in East’s win over Lincoln. Martinez finished with 25 points to lead all players, but seemed to take defeat harder than any other East player.

"We had control but we just let down," he said. "It was not really lazy (defense), but we gave up easy buckets."

"They deserved to win," Rudy Carey said of Montbello. "They played harder and smarter down the stretch. David’s done a nice job of getting his team ready. The game was lost when we had a three-on-one and couldn’t make the layup."

pearcea@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5352

Montbello 82, Denver East 79 2OT

Montbello 13 16 18 20 5 10 -- 82

Denver East 13 22 21 11 5 7 -- 79

M – Alphonso McDonald 4 1-2 10, Josh Littlejohn 6 0-2 12, David Jordan 2 6-6 10, Quincy Hairston 3 10-10 16, Anthony Porch 8 6-8 23, Nate Nelson 4 2-2 10, Sorl Shead 0 1-2 1. Totals 27 26-32 82.

DE – Jamiko Verner 1 2-4 4, Jordan Martinez 9 6-7 25, Blake Swain 2 1-3 6, Donell Wells 6 5-5 17, DaVaughn Thornton 1 0-0 2, Kenneth Gilbert 9 0-0 19, Demetrius Thornton 2 2-5 6. Totals 30 16-24 79.

Three-point goals – M, McDonald, Porch; DE, Martinez, Swain, Gilbert. Fouled out – M, McDonald; DE, Swain, DaVaughn Thornton. Technical fouls – M, McDonald.

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