RALEIGH — University of North Carolina fans will love seeing Isaiah Hicks’ stat line of 34 points and a record 30 rebounds, but it was teammate Mitron Terry who ended up being the hero of Oxford Webb’s first N.C. High School Athletics Association boys basketball championship.
Terry made what proved to be the game-winning basket with 40 second left in overtime Saturday and iced Webb’s 73-70 victory over Statesville with two free throws with 2.8 seconds to play.
Down 71-69 in overtime, Statesville (25-4) had a chance to tie the game again after Hicks, a UNC signee, fouled out with 19 seconds to go. But Statesville’s JaQuan Warren hit just the second of his two free throws to leave Webb (27-5) with a 71-70 lead.
Statesville managed to steal the ensuing inbounds, but Warren missed a driving layup in traffic and Webb’s Bryan Smith was able to send the rebound over to Terry with barely 3 seconds left to set up his free throws.
A desperation 3-point try by Josh Gaither missed at thee horn.
Hicks ended up as the game’s Most Valuable Player after breaking a 2008 record of 28 rebounds set in the state finals by Winston-Salem Prep’s Reggie Johnson, now at Miami.
“Wow, what a way for him to go out,” Webb coach Leo Brunelli said, adding he thought Hicks had several more blocks than the seven for which he was credited. “For him to put on a display like that wearing that Webb uniform for the last time – are you kidding me?”
“We just didn’t foul him out early enough,” Statesville coach Sonny Schofield said. “What a fantastic performance.”
Terry, with 14 points and seven assists, was named the East Region’s Most Outstanding Player.
Breon Borders, a Duke football signee who declined to matriculate this spring because he believed Statesville would reach the state basketball final, led the Greyhounds with 26 points and 9 rebounds.
Warren had 17 points, Josh Gaither 13 points and Marquis Willis 10 for Statesville.
Hicks had 13 points, 16 rebounds, two blocks and four dunks in the first half to help Webb take a 29-20 lead heading into the break.
“I was glad it was just nine,” Schofield said.
Webb hit just 14 of its first 39 shots, but made up for it by grabbing a 32-19 margin in rebounds over the first two quarters.
Borders shot 5-for-8 for 11 first-half points, but the rest of the Greyhounds made just 2 of 20 shots and missed their last 10 shots of the first half.
Down 44-30 late in the third quarter, Statesville made 6 of 10 shots in a crucial span of 2:14 late in the fourth quarter to wipe out almost an entire night of poor shooting and sent the game into overtime tied at 63. The Greyhounds were helped by Hicks picking up his fourth foul with 7:21 left in regulation.
Statesville grabbed a 67-63 lead at the start of regulation, but Hicks answered the ’Hounds twice to tie the OT at 67 and again at 69.
Statesville missed its last five shots from the field in the overtime.
On its run to the NCHSAA championship game, Statesville eliminated Harding University in the West regionals, ending the Rams’ hopes of having both its boys and girls teams in the state finals.
Harding’s girls defeated Chapel Hill in Saturday’s first 3A game.
