STATE HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES : Warriors Outpoint Everybody : Lee’s 45-Footer With 40 Seconds Left Sets Record

Luck may have played a big part in Woodbridge High School guard Rob Lee’s halfcourt shot Saturday, but it didn’t have much to do with the Warriors’ 89-63 victory over De Anza of Richmond in the state Division II boys’ basketball championship game.

The Warriors’ 18th consecutive victory was one of their easiest of the season, and their point total set a record for points scored in any division in a state championship game. The previous mark of 87 points was set by Sir Francis Drake of San Anselmo in 1983.

Lee’s only points set the record. The junior threw up a 45-foot shot with 40 seconds remaining that swished through the net and started the celebration on the Woodbridge bench.

With 40 seconds remaining? “I thought there was no time left,” Lee said. “It was pure luck.”

Lee may have been mentally out of sync on that play, but the Warriors were in tune with their game plan from the start.

Guards David Townsend and Robb Lee handled De Anza’s press easily. Center Adam Keefe and forward Vince Bryan provided the scoring and rebounding. Coach Bill Shannon mixed up his defenses so effectively that De Anza was confused most of the game.

All of which added up to a 26-point victory, which tied the tournament record for the biggest margin of victory in a title game.

“I can’t single out any one individual,” Shannon said. “This was a team win. I thought they might make a run at us in the second half, but they didn’t.”

The game provided another example of the improved play of Bryan, who is headed for Brigham Young University in the fall but was not heavily recruited by other Division I schools. A 6-foot 7-inch forward, Bryan scored 24 points and had 12 rebounds.

“Initially, I think Vince may have been overlooked because Adam has played so well,” Shannon said. “Now some guys are wishing they were as perceptive as BYU.” Bryan signed with BYU during the early signing period last November.

Bryan scored 21 points against Saugus in the Southern California regional final last week and followed that with another fine game Saturday.

“This is the way I played last spring and during the summer,” Bryan said. “I couldn’t understand why I wasn’t playing this way at the beginning of the year.

“I started going to the gym by myself and working on my shooting. All that work paid off. You couldn’t end your high school career any better than this.”