Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Prep Basketball:

Legacy sinks Liberty with buzzer beater

Expanded coverage

Legacy junior guard Sian Laine scored only four points –- two in the first quarter and two in the fourth quarter -- against Liberty in the Longhorns 44-42 win on Friday night, but it was enough for him to be the team hero as his last second shot vaulted Legacy to victory.

"It feels good to get the team on top with a 'W'," Laine said.

The non-conference win improved the Longhorns to 9-6 overall and 3-1 in the Northwest Division.

"We just beat a team that's one of the top 10 in the city," said Legacy coach Charles Janette. "We lost our last game by two at Cheyenne, so this was a good way to rebound."

The Longhorns led most of the game, but found themselves trailing by five points, 42-37, with 1:39 left in the game.

"We dropped our intensity and it took awhile to respond. Liberty is a well-coached team and played great in the second half," Janette said.

Liberty outscored Legacy 21-15 in the second half, led by senior forward Milos Knezevic, who had a game-high 15 points. Junior guard Ira Haywood led Legacy with 12 points.

"Turnovers were messing us up in the second half. We made sloppy passes and weren't thinking," Laine said.

Senior guard Delroy Gibbs knocked down a three-pointer with 1:05 to bring the Longhorns within two and junior forward Sam Johnson tied the game on a pair of free throws with 27 seconds to go.

Liberty (8-4, 2-1 Southeast Division) put the ball in the hands of senior guard Kenneth Peters for the game-winning shot, but Legacy got the rebound with three seconds left and got the ball down court to Laine for the buzzer-beater.

"We had a chance to win. We got the ball in the hands of the guy we wanted and ran the play to perfection," Patriots coach Pat Welby said. "This was a good opportunity to play a quality opponent on the road."

He added while it was a tough way to lose a contest, he was pleased with his team coming back from a 31-21 deficit in the third quarter to tie the game and eventually take a lead.

"I told them in the locker room that they showed heart and character," Welby said. "They started buying into what we've been preaching since day one about playing defense."

Both teams return to league play on Monday with the Longhorns hosting Arbor View and Liberty playing at Green Valley.

Brent Hinckley can be reached at 990-7822 or [email protected].

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