Hart Had No Defense for ‘Zone’ of Burroughs’ Colon

Gabe Colon knew what had to be done.

He knew who had to do it.

With Burroughs High trailing Hart by 10 points at halftime of a Foothill League basketball game last week at Burroughs, Colon told his teammates he would take charge in the second half.

The senior guard was true to his word.

Colon scored 30 of his game-high 46 points after halftime, causing fits for anyone who tried to defend him. Burroughs stormed back behind Colon but missed a chance to win at the buzzer when Colon’s 23-foot three-point shot hit the back of the rim. Hart won, 82-80.

“I was falling away and floating to my left when I shot the ball, but I still thought it was going in,” Colon said of the last shot. “It wasn’t a textbook shot, but I just knew it was going down.”

And who could blame him? Colon made 12 of 17 shots from three-point range and 16 of 24 overall.

“It was just amazing; the place was going crazy,” Burroughs Coach Art Sullivan said. “Everyone in the stands, both teams, the refs were all watching him.

“One ref was watching in awe and kept missing Gabe get hit almost every time he shot.”

Said Hart Coach Mike May: “After watching it again on film, you really see what an outstanding performance it was. We didn’t give him any free shots, we had a hand in his face each time, but he kept making them.”

Colon surpassed the school record of 43 points established by former UCLA star Lynn Shackelford in 1965. The 12 three-pointers fell one short of the Southern Section record set last season by Rick Martinez of Fontana Ambassador Christian.

“I’ve had good shooting games before, but I’ve never had a performance like that--I’ve never played that well before,” Colon said. “I was in a zone. When you get that feeling you shoot the ball and it’s like you really don’t even have to aim.

“I was hitting everything no matter what I threw up there.”

Although Colon surprised himself somewhat, a deft shooting touch is nothing new to him. He averaged 14.2 points last season and has improved to 18.4 this season. Colon had 23 points in a double-overtime victory against Saugus last week. Most of his shot attempts come from well beyond the three-point line.

At 6 feet, 180 pounds, Colon acknowledges he hardly intimidates opponents physically. But he makes their heads turn and hearts race when the ball leaves his hands.

“I’m basically a three-point shooter, and when I get that feeling all I want to do is keep on shooting,” Colon said. “When I feel it, I can make it whether I’m standing on two legs or one.”

Sullivan agreed.

“From seeing him every day in practice, you know what he can do once he starts to get going,” Sullivan said. “Usually he’ll wait a little while for the game to come to him, but against Hart he went right out and made a couple of quick ones.

“You could see he really wanted it.”

Colon said he had something to prove against Hart. “I wanted to make a statement that we were going to be a team to be reckoned with in the league, that playing Burroughs wouldn’t be a cakewalk,” he said. “Now Hart knows they have some competition.”