February 04, 2005

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Palo Alto Online

Eastside Prep wins thriller at the buzzer

by Keith Peters

History was on the line and a basketball title was at stake when Chris Bischof called his Eastside Prep boys' basketball team together for one final timeout.

The Panthers had just rallied from a six-point deficit with 1:08 to play and now found themselves in a tie game with just a half-second remaining - hardly enough time to get a shot off.

Overtime beckoned. A loss would mean the end of Eastside Prep's amazing streak of never having lost a Christian Private Schools Athletic League game since the school began playing in 1997. A loss also would mean falling out of a first-place tie in the league race.

So Bischof gathered his troops.

"I was going to set up a lob for Derrick (Haynie), while having Marquis (Pickrom) set a screen," Bischof said. "Marquis looked right at me and said if we got him the ball, he could make the shot. With that kind of confidence, I figured 'why not?"

Pickrom ran off the screen set by Haynie, took the inbounds pass and in one motion lofted a shot to the basket. The three-pointer swished through, giving Eastside Prep an incredible 49-46 victory over Mid-Peninsula on Tuesday night.

"As soon as it left my hand, I knew it was going in," said Pickrom, a sophomore who had never before made a game-winning shot.. "Every day I practice that shot, just in case in need it."

The Panthers certainly needed it. They were all but dead, trailing by 46-40 with 1:08 left in the game between two undefeated teams. A three-pointer by Pickrom made it 46-43 with 58 seconds left and another trey, by Haynie with 29 seconds remaining, tied the game and set up Pickrom's game-winner.

The victory kept alive Eastside Prep's amazing streak in the Christian Private Schools Athletic League. The Panthers have never lost since the school began its basketball program in 1997, a streak that now stretches to 93 straight.

Eastside Prep (8-0, 18-6) now has control of the CPSAL race over Mid-Peninsula (8-1, 15-6), which saw its nine-game winning streak end. The teams likely will meet again in the league tournament and perhaps in the Central Coast Section Division V playoffs.

For Eastside Prep coach Chris Bischof, those next meetings with the Dragons will have to be something extra special to top Tuesday's game that ranks among his all-time best.

"Four years ago against St. Lawrence, we had a double-overtime victory," Bischof said. "We scored to send it into overtime. We scored to send it into double overtime. And we scored to win it. That was the most amazing game I've been involved with."

And what about Tuesday's win?

"This is a tie for No. 1," Bischof said.

Eastside Prep looked in control at 31-24 just into the third quarter. At that point, the Panthers went cold from the field. By the time they converted their next field goal, Mid-Peninsula was on top by 42-35 with 5:02 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Pickrom, for one, was concerned. He could sense that his team's streak was about to end and that the CPSAL title was in jeopardy.

"But our team never gave up," Pickrom said.

Bischof also thought things looked pretty bleak late in the game.

"We were still in it, but things weren't looking good," he said.

Until the momentum swung in the Panthers' favor.

Holding a 46-40 lead with 1:08 to play, Mid-Peninsula sophomore Jamar Williams, whose brother Jeremiah played at Eastside Prep last season, missed two free throws. Pickrom responded with a three-pointer for a 46-43 game. When Mid-Peninsula turned the ball over, Haynie raced up court and knocked down another trey to deadlock things.

Both teams had shots at winning it with 23 seconds left, but missed. Mid-Peninsula had the ball last, until a traveling call gave it back to Eastside Prep - setting up Pickrom for his game-winning basket and celebratory run around the Panthers' gym while players and fans swarmed the court.

Pickrom finished with 18 points while Haynie added 13 and fellow senior Tim Johnson had 10. Mid-Peninsula senior Walter Washington led the visitors with 20 points, but no one else scored more than six despite the Dragons' decided height advantage.

"It felt like we blew an opportunity to do something special," said Mid-Pen coach Curtis Haggins. "We didn't excecute our defensive game plan at the end. They made the plays, too, but we created the situation to make it happen.

"But, I'm proud of my team," Haggins continued. "We'll learn from our mistakes. I'll make sure of that."

In the PAL North Division, Menlo School (8-3, 14-5) got 28 points from Blake Schultz in a 68-61 win over visiting Oceana in a showdown between two of the four teams tied for the division lead. The Knights' victory, coupled with El Camino's 56-52 win over Terra Nova, leaves Menlo and El Camino tied for first. That deadlock will be broken tonight when the teams meet at El Camino.

In the PAL South Division, Menlo-Atherton again played without scoring leader Dan Trautman (sprained ankle) and suffered a 78-52 setback to division co-leader Burlingame on Tuesday. The Bears (6-5, 11-10) bounced back on Wednesday against last-place Mills and posted a 58-38 victory as Carson Finkle (17 points) and Kevin Disibio (11) helped make up for Trautman's absence.

In the SCVAL De Anza Division, Gunn's brief two-game win streak came to an end in a 55-39 loss at second-place Fremont. The Titans, who got 16 points from sophomore Peter Jordan, fell to 4-5 (11-11 overall). Gunn will host Palo Alto (7-0, 20-1) tonight at 7:30 p.m.

Girls basketball

Konstance Kirkendoll scored 16 points and Alex Shepard added 12 as Menlo School (7-4, 12-9) remained tied for second place (with Terra Nova) in the PAL North Division race.

In the West Bay Athletic League, Castilleja (5-2) bounced back from last weekend's nonleague loss to Eastside Prep with a 49-20 romp over host Mercy-Burlingame as seniors Nikki Perlman (13 points) and Mika Peterman (10) led the way. The Gators (11-7) came back with a 53-43 nonleague win over visiting King's Academy on Wednesday at Peterman' 19 points paced the winners.

Woodside Priory (1-8, 6-9) ended an eight-game losing streak with a 51-35 win over visiting ICA as freshman Alyssa Cheung and senior Laura Trudelle split 30 points.

In the West Catholic Athletic League, Sacred Heart Prep (3-7, 13-10) got 18 points from Jessica Pecota in a 47-35 loss to visiting Notre Dame-Belmont. The Gators played without freshman point guard Hannah Stephens, out with a sprained ankle.

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