Boys 3A hoops: Berkeley Prep has shot late but comes up short

By Martin Bater, Times correspondent
Published February 15, 2008

TAMPA - Berkeley Prep (23-5) is down 58-56 in its region quarterfinal against Dunbar (20-7) with 10 seconds left.

Buccaneers senior point guard Zak Kozanski knows that this could be the last shot of his high school career.

Kozanski beats his man and shoots from the free-throw line. The shot bounces off the back of the basket.

Austin Suarez gets the rebound and misses the putback. Dunbar wins.

"(Dunbar) went to a 2-3 zone in the final possession, but we had the shot and the guy we wanted. The shots just didn't fall for us tonight. We had plenty of opportunities to tie or win the game down the stretch," Bucs coach Bobby Reinhart said.

The Tigers committed three turnovers in the final minute but survived with gritty defense to reach the semifinals.

"We made some mistakes at the end with our young players, but we won. Both teams played great tonight," Tigers coach Andre McGall said.

Tigers forward Javaris Edison stepped up in the fourth quarter, scoring eight while shooting 80 percent from the field. He finished the game with 14 points.

Bucs forward Jonathan Grey kept his team in it, scoring eight in the final quarter and finishing with 18.

Martin Bater, Times correspondent

[Last modified February 15, 2008, 00:27:41]