Falcons come up short in overtime loss to Prentice
By Nathaniel Underwood
It would take three overtime periods to decide a winner in Prentice last Tuesday evening, but the hosting Buccaneers eventually came out on top, edging out Abbotsford 81-78.
While the Falcons held a 30-19 halftime lead, the home team battled back in the second half and managed a last second layup to tie the game and force overtime. After a pair of seven-point overtime periods from both squads, Prentice finally took a definitive advantage in the third to take the conference contest.
Tied 55-55 with under 30 seconds remaining, the Falcons’ Christian Fuentes was fouled on a three-point attempt and put the Falcons ahead by a possession by making two free throws. Abbotsford was able to come up with a stop on Prentice’s next possession, but after the Falcons were not able to score after a quick foul by the home team, the Buccaneer’s Evan Lord was able to navigate down the court and score to force overtime.
A three from Prentice got them on the board first in the overtime period, but Grayson Totzke tied things up with a three for Abbotsford. A three from Koren Decker and Irvin Aguilera’s free throw helped them keep pace and force another overtime. Another three-point shot for the Buccaneers on their first possession of the second overtime helped them stay ahead for most of the four minutes, but four points from Totzke and Jack Sheahan working an old-fashioned three-point play with under 25 seconds left put Abbotsford up 71-69.
Prentice managed to work a pair of free throw attempts themselves in the final seconds and, after sinking both of them, the game headed into its third overtime. Once again, the Buccaneers struck first, and while a three from Decker and a pair of makes from Totzke kept the Falcons within a point, time was not on Abbotsford’s side. A pair of free throws for Prentice made it a three point game with just two seconds left, and a desperate heave from Totzke on the last play of the game came up short.
Inconsistency from the free throw line with the game on the line hurt the Falcons late. They shot 6-for-17 from the charity stripe in the last two minutes of regulation and the three overtime periods. Prentice, meanwhile, went 6-for-8 over the same stretch.
An 18-4 run for Abbotsford gave them an early advantage and allowed them to hold a double-digit lead for much of the first period. A pair of threes from Aguilera quickly put the Falcons up 6-2 and the Abbotsford senior scored 11 of the Falcons’first 13 points of the game. While the Buccaneers made a small run of their own to pull back within six, four straight points for AJ Brodhagen had the visitors up 22-12 and back in control, eventually taking an 30-19 advantage into halftime Prentice outscored Abbotsford 32-18 over the first 14 minutes of the second period, allowing them come back into a game that Abbotsford had once held significant hold over.
Totzke put together yet another doubledouble performance for the Falcons, collecting 28 points and 11 rebounds on Tuesday. The Abbotsford senior shot 11-for-22 from the field and made six of his 11 three-point attempts. He also led the Falcons in assists with five. Aguilera gathered 18 points, eight rebounds and three steals as the Falcons’ other primary source of offense.
Decker finished with nine points and four assists, Sheahan had eight points and Brodhagen picked up six points and 11 rebounds. Payton Schreiber added five points and Fuentes collected four points and three steals.
