BOYS PLAY-IN: Molina digs deep, reaches high to preserve Sierra Vista’s win over Eldorado
Dallin Molina’s heart sank when Eldorado’s D.J. Billingsley came up with an offensive rebound after a missed free throw in the closing seconds on Tuesday.
Fortunately for Sierra Vista, Molina’s hands stayed high.
Molina blocked Billingsley’s put-back attempt, and the Mountain Lions escaped with a 55-54 win to claim the final berth in the Class 4A boys basketball state tournament.
“It was like my life flashed before my eyes,” said Molina, who led Sierra Vista with 16 points, seven rebounds and two blocked shots. “It was the end. But I had enough energy left to contest it. And luckily I got it.”
The Mountain Lions (25-6) had a chance to potentially seal the game with 12.5 seconds to go and top-shooter Viko Noma’aea at the free-throw line.
But Noma’aea missed the first of two attempts, and Sierra Vista led 55-53.
Eldorado (23-8) called timeout and got the ball to DaQuon Thrower near the top of the key. Thower dribbled to his left and was fouled by Noma’aea with 3.3 seconds.
Thrower hit the first, but missed the second as Billingsley rebounded the ball. Molina got a piece of the put-back attempt, and Gary Jacobs came up with the loose ball to seal the win for Sierra Vista.
“That was pretty scary,” Molina said. “I wasn’t looking forward to that. I was kind of nervous. Thank goodness he missed the free throw and I got the blocked shot at the end.”
Thrower hit a long 3-pointer with 4:01 to play to break a 45-45 tie, but Sierra Vista scored the next six points, and wouldn’t trail again.
Sierra Vista struggled from the foul line all night, and the Mountain Lions were shaky down the stretch. Xavier Rogers made 1 of 2 free throws with 39.4 seconds left to give Sierra Vista a 54-51 lead.
After Eldorado failed to control the rebound on the miss, Molina missed the front end of a one-and-one with 36 seconds.
Noma’aea, who was 1-for-4 from the line in the fourth quarter, then went 1-for-2 with 12.5 seconds to give Eldorado a final chance.
“Honestly, I thought they weren’t going to have that chance, because I had exactly who I wanted on the free-throw line to put it out of reach,” Sierra Vista coach Kent Johnson said. “Man, if I had any hair, I would have lost it all right there.”
Sierra Vista was 10-for-22 from the line on the night, including a 3-for-9 effort in the fourth quarter.
Maiscei Grier added 14 points, and Noma’aea scored 13 for Sierra Vista, which play Canyon Springs (27-2) at 4:40 p.m. Thursday at the Orleans Arena.
Curtis Stewart led Eldorado with 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Thower scored 13 for the Sundevils.
