Austin Corley hit a pair of free throws to even things at 58 with under a minute left in overtime, but Henry Guerrera calmly cashed in on a pair of his own with two seconds left to lift visiting Dublin Jerome to a 60-58 OCC-Cardinal Division win over Olentangy Berlin Friday night in Delaware.
The Bears played really well in spurts, but so did the Celtics, who needed a late rally to even force the extra period in the first place.
Berlin’s Abel Abenet hit a huge three-pointer from the left corner, his third three of the half, to give the Bears a 50-43 lead with one minute left in regulation.
Jerome’s CC Ezirim answered with a quick three-point play the old-fashioned way at the other end, though, and after picking up a steal on the ensuing inbound pass, the Celtics pulled within two, 50-48, when Luke Kuhlman hit a pair of free throws with 31.7 seconds left.
Berlin had a chance to seal the deal at the line, but missed the front end of a pair of one-and-one opportunities to leave the door open … and the Celtics didn’t take long to take full advantage as Ryan Nutter was fouled driving to the hoop with two seconds left before hitting both free throws to even things at 50 after four quarters of action.
Jerome maintained the momentum at the start of OT, winning the tip and getting a three from Lachlan MacDonald on its first possession. Berlin’s Jason Inbody hit a three midway through to give his team a 56-55 lead with 1:14 left, but Kuhlman answered with a three of his own to set up the final sequence.
Nutter led all scorers with 22 points while Inbody finished with a team-best 17 points for the Bears.
Olentangy 55, Hilliard Darby 47
The Braves trailed early, but used a huge second quarter to take control on the way to an OCC-Cardinal Division win over the visiting Panthers Friday night in Lewis Center.
Down 11-7 heading into the second, Olentangy outscored Darby 24-6 to blow things open by the break. The Panthers chipped into their deficit a bit in the second half, outscoring the Braves 30-24, but trailed by double digits most of the way.
Tavian James led Olentangy with a game-high 19 points in the win. Luke Elmore was also solid, finishing with a team-best four triples on the way to a 15-point night.
Cam Gilkerson, who had four threes of his own, finished with 14 points to pace the Panthers.
Hilliard Bradley 63, Olentangy Liberty 49
The Patriots fell behind 17-8 after a quarter and never quite recovered as the host Jaguars went on to notch an OCC-Central Division win Friday night in Hilliard.
Bradley’s AJ Mirgon led all scorers with 23 points while Ty Foster and Trey Majizadeh had nine apiece for Liberty.
Also: Olentangy Orange 61, Upper Arlington 39.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Delaware Hayes built a 40-35 lead through three quarters and held on down the stretch to escape with a 55-54 OCC-Capital Division win over host Dublin Scioto Friday night.
Alexis Amabile was a force for the Pacers, finishing with a game-best 29 points in the win. She had a pair of key three-pointers on the way to a 10-point fourth quarter. She had seven threes overall, including three in Hayes’ 21-point second quarter.
Sophia Midura was also steady, closing with nine points, while Karleigh Rothe had 19 points for the Irish.
Westerville North 47, Big Walnut 45
Imari Martin poured in 21 points, Kayla Curry-Brown added 13 and Charia Smith finished with 11 as the first-place Warriors held off the Golden Eagles in OCC-Capital action Friday night in Westerville.
Abby Brown hit three triples on the way to an 18-point night for Big Walnut.
Hilliard Darby 40, Olentangy 33
Ashley Powers scored a game-high 17 points and Bella Heaton added 11 to lead the Panthers to a league win over the visiting Braves Friday night in Hilliard.
Kennedie Doup led Olentangy with nine points in the setback.
