Knights turned up the pressure with a team-high 12 steals, while Central lost top player Wilridge to an MCL strain
Austin – Offense alone wasn’t the answer, but a championship defense keyed by Allen pushed the Knights into familiar territory.
With less than 20 seconds remaining, forward D’Angelo Allen blocked what might have been a game-tying basket and Dallas Kimball used a team-high 12 steals, to down the Beaumont Central Jaguars 60-56 in the Class 4A Semifinals on Thursday night at the Frank Erwin Center.
After last year’s painful title-game loss to Terry, the Knights advanced to it’s fourth consecutive final where it will face Amarillo (28-5), a 60-46 winner over Schertz Clemens, on Saturday at 3 pm at the Erwin Center.
The Knights claimed titles in the 2011, 2012 and finished as a finalist in 2013.
With 20 seconds left, fourth year varsity letterman Allen known for making timely defensive-stops, blocked Michael Jacquet’s potential game-tying shot. Jacquet was in perfect position under the goal, as he went up for the shot. Within seconds, Allen rotated from the front-side of the basket to made a clean block, as Central’s bench watched in frustration.
“Coach Snoop called a time out after we had just turned the ball over,” Kimball’s Allen continued. “When I saw a Central player go past one of my teammates with the ball, I reacted quickly there, to get the last block. I’ve never lost a playoff game. I’ve always lost or won in the championship game.”
Losing top scorer Forward E’Torrion Wildridge, who leads a unit with no seniors in the starting lineup, left the game with 1:06 remaining in the first quarter, which forced Central to look elsewhere for scoring. Wildridge finished with eight points.
The Knights (24-7) showed a third arsenal of its game. Its quickness and swarming defense ripped the Jaguars for 12 steals. Also fueled its transition game, helping to hold a minimum lead most of the evening.
At that time, the Jaguars had seen its worst drop off.
Junior guard Jawun Evans, who scored a game-high 23 points, kept things hot on the offense end for the Knights with explosive moves to the basket and torrent shooting from the perimeter.
Allen, Dondre Carter and Xavier Johnson were other Knights in double figures with 11 points each. Allen also finished with five blocks.
For Central (31-6) it was a night of missed opportunities and carelessness with the ball which ultimately caught up to them. Twice with less than two minutes left in the game, the Jaguars couldn’t gather the rebound after Kimball missed the front end of two, one-and-ones. Then moments after, a turnover halted a golden opportunity.
Nigel Pearson led Central with 23 points and Andre Morris tossed in 10.
Adding to the Jaguars’ disappointment were two point-blank missed attempts at close range, which would have tied the game at 52.
Central trailed 54-47 entering the fourth quarter. Despite weathering the Knights’ sequence of scoring opportunities on most of its possessions of the second half, the Jaguars drew within two points, after Pearson drove to the basket, converting a layup and was fouled. The bonus cut Kimball’s lead 56-54 with 4:37 left.
“We never got in sync and a lot of it had to do with Central doing a good job,” Knights coach Royce Johnson added. “When the kid Wildridge went out, I think Central guards got a little more aggressive than what we saw on the film. It was almost like they picked it up and had nothing to lose. We’ve been in that situation before.”
“I told the guys at halftime, this was going to come down to the end, unless we put it away in the first four minutes of the third quarter and we didn’t do that,” said Johnson.
Senior guard Dondre Carter opened the game with a trey from the right baseline to give Kimball, 3-0 lead. Then Andre Morris and Nijal Pearson scored six points to give Central a 6-5 lead with 5:30 left in the first quarter.
Both teams kept the game flow moving at a fast pace.
After Wildridge left the game, Kimball regained the lead, 21-18 after one quarter.
“It always hurts when you lose your leading scorer,” Central coach Robert Lee said, speaking of forward E’Torrion Wildridge. “But their a good ball club and we are too.”
The offensive show continued for both teams in the second quarter until Kimball used its quickness to come up with four steals which helped build its largest lead of the game, 43-36 entering halftime.
Time after time down the court, it was a mystery trying to stop the Knights, who effortlessly found open players for inside baskets as well as from around the perimeter.
Kimball watched its biggest lead swell to 11-points, 54-43 after Allen’s midrange jumper with 1:43 left in the third quarter.
Then the block shot coupled with Johnson’s layup, increased Kimball’s lead to four, 60-56 with 11 seconds left.
