New Kent survives Heritage in overtime, earns berth to state tournament

New Kent’s Dylan Bowman (20) extends his hand out in a shot block attempt of Heritage’s Roderick Perry.

Robb Johnson photo

Heritage’s Hurricanes from Newport News looked to leave a path of destruction as they squared off with New Kent’s Trojans in the Feb. 27 Region 3A semifinal contest with a berth of the state tournament on the line. And while both teams battled evenly for four quarters, it would be the hosting Trojans who weathered the storm.

A Christian Joyner lay-in with 14.9 seconds proved to be the go-ahead score as New Kent defeated Heritage 90-88 in front of a sold-out crowd.

Both teams played evenly for the first three quarters, with the back-and-forth affair continuing in the fourth quarter. Joyner’s opening score gave New Kent a 66-63 lead. New Kent slowly built the lead up to seven (77-70) after Dylan Bowman’s score at the 3:22 mark of the final quarter.

But Heritage refused to give up, as they used defense to force New Kent to play instead of stalling the clock. Eventually, it would be Hurricane guard Tavarus Dove who drained a three-pointer to cap off a 10-3 run for Heritage, tying the game at 80 apiece. The Hurricanes turned the ball over with less than 15 seconds, allowing New Kent one more chance in regulation. However, Will Ross’ three-pointer failed to fall, resulting in the contest heading into overtime.

In the extra frame, Heritage jumped out with a quick 5-0 run as Mehki Watkins and Isaiah Solomon placed the ball in the basket. A putback by Marty Wray cut the Hurricanes’ lead back down to three (85-82). A free throw bumped up the visitor’s lead, but Kyle Diggs drained a pair of three throws to slide the lead back down to two (86-84) with a minute remaining.

New Kent’s pressure defense forced Heritage into a turnover with 47.5 seconds remaining. Wray made the visitors pay with an up-and-under lay-in to tie the game while being fouled. After missing the free throw, Trojan teammate Krisopher Leeper grabbed the rebound and put the ball back in to return the lead to New Kent (88-86) with 29 seconds remaining.

After a timeout, Heritage pushed the ball down the court, with a floater in the lane falling and tying the game up. But after the lay-in, a long inbound pass by the Trojans found Joyner’s hand, who went for the lay-in and helped New Kent regain the lead (90-88) with 14.9 ticks remaining in overtime.

New Kent’s pressure defense attempted to slow Heritage’s advancement down the floor. But Dove was able to get open on the wing and launch a three-pointer. The shot hit the front of the rim but was rebounded by the Hurricanes. But before the shot could go back up, time expired on the clock with New Kent holding onto the win.

After the contest, New Kent Head Coach Garrett Ross spoke about his team and their common goal.

“They play for each other, and it doesn’t matter who scores,” the victorious head coach said. “It feels good to go to states. These kids earned it with a lot of hours put in and I am very grateful.”

Wray’s 25 points led New Kent in the scoring column. Diggs scored 18, Joyner finished with 17, Ross tossed in 13, Leeper finished with 11, and Bowman contributed six.