EL PASO COUNTY – Each team had, on at least one occasion, the other dead to rights.
But Bayfield High School and St. Mary’s High School emphatically exercised their right to live, and in the process made the meeting Friday night in Peyton memorable for any number of reasons depending on who was asked. One aspect, however, was unanimous:
Bayfield’s, specifically junior Hayes Malone’s, long-distance shooting somehow wasn’t enough as St. Mary’s took the 81-67 overtime win in the 3A state boys basketball playoffs.
Seemingly, any time the underdog Wolverines, the No. 21 seed in the opening round of 32 needed something big, whether to surge or simply survive, Malone delivered – making nine 3-pointers and racking up a game-high 33 points. As a team, BHS totaled an eye-popping 15 treys against a very well-rounded St. Mary’s squad, but none in overtime.
“That was the best shooting performance I’ve ever seen from a high school team I’ve ever coached against,” SMHS head coach Trey Harris said. “Shout out to Bayfield; they really did well. We turned up the pressure a little later in the third … made some really good adjustments, started taking care of the ball and got back in the game – I was hoping they were going to go away, but they were a tough opponent. Didn’t stop fighting.”
Seeded 12th overall and the designated ‘home’ team in the night’s second Region V semifinal upon 5-seed Peyton High Schools’ Clowers Court, Colorado Springs-based St. Mary’s (17-7 overall) began the battle with an explosive 13-2 start, keyed by Pirate sophomore guard/forward Cruz Artaechevarria’s first eight points plus a three by sophomore Dominic Lewis, during the opening 3:48.
But Malone then swished his first three, senior guard/forward Kingston Martinez netted his soon after, and reserve junior guard Henry Ferrell beat the buzzer with BHS’ third trey – bringing the ‘guests’ back to 16-13 through eight intense minutes.
“That zone that they were in, it was three up top, two down, but they were super-active; they made it a point to not let us get a three-point shot off, and they did a good job,” said Malone, who fouled out with 1:39 remaining in the four-minute bonus session. “Made us miss some layups and then went the other way, capitalized.”
After Artaechevarria missed two free throws 27 ticks into the second quarter, Martinez buried his second trey to tie the score at 16. St. Mary’s sophomore center Kisean Dawson then crashed inside for an indefensible 2-pointer, but Malone answered with a Martinez-assisted corner three, giving the Wolverines (14-10 overall) their first lead. All too eager to join the party, junior Drew Jepson then drained his first trey (assisted by junior forward/center Cameron Queen) and Harris wisely used a timeout with 5:28 remaining in the half.
Queen then knocked down a 14-foot deuce, then added a surprising Jepson-assisted corner three. Malone followed with two more treys (one off the backboard) and reserve senior forward Brody LaVenture made one of two FTs with 50.4 seconds left as Bayfield entered intermission up 36-33.
St. Mary’s, however, came back from the break with a vengeance; a two-pointer by sophomore guard Bret Stewart and a subsequent triple by senior guard Jeremiah Starr ignited what could have been a crippling 17-0 run before, you guessed it, Malone sank another corner three with 3:30 left in the third quarter.
Malone’s sixth and seventh triples closed the gap to 52-48 with 1:14 left, and neither side added any more before time expired. Bayfield, however, had the momentum and, restarted by a Jepson three, began the fourth quarter on what could have been a clinching 19-0 tear. Suddenly down 61-52, Artaechevarria revitalized the Pirates with a steal and two-handed dunk, and BHS boss Damon White Thunder used a timeout with 3:23 to go.
Martinez converted a three-point ‘and-one’ play with 2:19 left, rebuilding BHS’ lead to 64-56, but senior forward Michael Trechter fueled a frantic 9-1 burst with what ended up being his last five (of 16 total) points, and SMHS was fortunate to have forced OT after Bayfield junior guard Xavier Sutherlin missed a long jumper with 22.6 ticks left, and after Malone then came away with a steal at the other end with time for a glance at the distant basket and desperate two-handed heave.
Which, had it gone in, wouldn’t have greatly shocked anyone. Especially Harris, who then implored his players to again crank up the intensity – which they did, in the form of a swift 7-0 spree beginning overtime and putting St. Mary’s up 72-65. Malone then drove in to score his last two points, but the Pirates then made an unanswered nine of 10 FTs during the penultimate 2:00 to finally seal the deal.
Artaechevarria booked a team-high 19 points without a triple for St. Mary’s. Starr made all six of his OT attempts and finished with 13 points as St. Mary’s advanced to challenge event-hosting Peyton (21-3 overall) the next afternoon. St. Mary’s won that game, 58-52, to advance to the Great 8.
Martinez finished with 11 points; Queen ended up with nine points in defeat.
The Wolverines should be on the rise next season with Martinez being the lone senior in Bayfield’s top-five scorers this season.
“We had some big runs, so the crowd got into it – it was pretty loud – and I definitely fed off that,” said Malone. “But I’m obviously devastated. All of us are feeling it, but we had a pretty sentimental moment in the locker room; I think we’re all ready to make next year the best we’ve had in a long time.”
