Boys’ basketball: ‘Miracle’ win for Alemany

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Alemany Coach Tray Meeks didn’t hold back about what he thought about his team’s 62-61 victory over Bellflower St. John Bosco in a Division III Southern California Regional final on Saturday.

‘Miracles happen,’ he said. ‘Look at the the stats. On paper, there’s no way we win that game but God.’

Alemany was outrebounded, 49-20. St. John Bosco shot 43%. Alemany shot 38.5%

But a basket on a reverse layup by KJ Moffett with 1.5 seconds left gave the Warriors the victory. It was a frantic, wild final 35 seconds. St. John Bosco came back from an 18-point deficit in the second quarter to take a six-point lead with 1:38 left.

But turnovers gave Alemany the chance to come back. Marqueze Coleman made one of two free throws with 34.8 seconds left, pulling the Warriors within 59-58. Alemany’s Max Guercy ended up with the ball off the rebound and scored with 27 seconds left for a 60-59 Alemany lead.

St. John Bosco’s Kameron Murrell scored on a layup with 14 seconds left. With no timeouts, Alemany quickly brought up the ball and Moffett got it on the baseline, drove and scored. The Warriors earned their first trip to Sacramento and will play Sacred Heart Cathedral at 2:45 p.m. on Saturday.

‘Wow. That’s the only thing I can say about the game,’ Meeks said. ‘What an amazing game.’

Coleman had 24 points and Max Guercy 20 for Alemany. Isaac Hamilton scored 32 points for St. John Bosco.

‘It hurts now,’ St. John Bosco Coach Derrick Taylor said. ‘They’re young. We’ll get over it. We’ll bounce back.’

-- Eric Sondheimer