This state championship required more toughness from Gorman basketball

By Ray Brewer (contact)

Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020 | 12:16 a.m.

It was a three-second swing in the initial minute of Friday's state high school basketball championship game. Titles aren’t meant to be won or lost on one shot, especially this early in a matchup expected to be closely contested.

Yet, Will McClendon’s transition 3-pointer for Bishop Gorman was telling: The Gaels weren’t going to be challenged on this night at the Lawlor Events Center against Desert Pines, jumping out to a quick lead and limiting the Jaguars to six third-quarter points for a 65-37 victory and the program’s ninth consecutive championship.

Along the way, Gorman has faced plenty of challenges in the playoffs, which Desert Pines was expected to bring. And, the Jaguars scored the game’s first points for a 2-0 advantage, signaling the start of a back-and-forth affair many had wanted.

But Gorman raced the ball up the court with Zaon Collins rifling a pass to McClendon, who buried a nothing-but-net 3-pointer. For all intents and purposes, the game was over.

“We just try to continue the tradition and keep playing hard. That’s all it is,” said McClendon, whose 16 points were a game-high.

This wasn’t the most dominating Gorman team in its run of championships, although the Gaels finished with a 28-3 record and to-be-determined national ranking. This team, after all, was almost upset by Liberty in the regional semifinals, which would have ended the season.

But this team has a competitive nature unlike many others, coaches say. Practices are often fierce, especially with McClendon and Collins — two bluechip recruits — battling. That competitive mentality paid off when Gorman had to remake its rotation at multiple points of the season after losing three of its expected six top players.

That forced 6-foot-5 forward Braden Lamar to the post. Lamar turned into one of Gorman’s toughest players, receiving credit for banging against bigger opponents all season and doing all the little things to help the team win — grabbing rebounds, taking blocks on defense and scoring important baskets.

“He’s always been tough. Big, strong kid,” Gorman coach Grant Rice said. “Unbelievable kid. One of our unsung heroes.”

One play symbolized that effort against Desert Pines.

In the fourth quarter, with Gorman ahead by more than 20 points, Lamar went up for a dunk only to be denied by the Jaguars’ Darnell Washington with a hard foul. The 6-foot-8, 250-pound Washington, who is football’s top-ranked tight end recruit, is as physically intimidating as any high school player in the nation. His foul slammed Lamar to the floor with a loud thud.

But Lamar picked himself up and drained two free throws, bringing one of the loudest cheers of the night from the Gorman faithful. (The loudest came in the final minute when senior forward Trent Dieleman calmly drained a 3-pointer.)

“I’ve always thought of myself as a tougher player, but I think (playing in the post) made me tougher down the stretch (of the season),” Lamar said. “Just stronger and faster.”

Gorman started to pull away in the second quarter for a 30-19 halftime advantage. Noah Taitz, one of those pieces missing from the lineup for most of the season, drained a pair of 3-pointers to create separation. He finished with 13 points.

“You could see what a better team we are with Noah Taitz,” Rice said. “The game comes so easy to him.”

Gorman should again be the favorites next season as it plays for a 10th straight title, even with losing the likes of LSU commit Mwani Wilkinson who emerged into “the state’s best player” and the Stanford-bound Taitz. Collins and McClendon return — they will be playing for four championships in four years.

Desert Pines won’t be far behind as its top three players — Milos Uzan, Dayshawn Wiley and Anthony Swift will each return.

Ray Brewer can be reached at 702-990-2662 or [email protected]. Follow Ray on Twitter at twitter.com/raybrewer21