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Hilton Head High girls basketball coach Dave Greenberg admitted as much Tuesday, after his players schemed the Seahawks' final play-- drawn up for a freshman, no less.
Americal Jenkins rewarded her teammates' faith, making a layup off an inbounds play with one second remaining in overtime to lift the Seahawks to a 47-46 win at rival Bluffton High School.
"I'm still shocked right now," Jenkins said after the Seahawks celebrated in the away locker room. "I'm still shaking and everything."
Hilton Head High remained unbeaten in Region 7-AAA, improving to 5-0. Bluffton slipped to 4-1 in league play.
Bluffton locked down Hilton Head High standout Sabrina Drammis following her 10-point outburst during the first quarter, forcing the Seahawks to find other options. And it was the underclassmen who provided the additional scoring. Freshman Lauryn Bush finished with a game-high 16 points, including the tying basket at the end of regulation. And Jenkins, a post player, finished with 10.
"This is a team we needed to beat to show we could play with the big dogs," Bush said.
Greenberg called timeout with 3.2 seconds left in overtime and wanted the final play to go to a cutting guard in the lane. But Shy Flemming and Jamese Franklin objected, saying the ball should go to Jenkins on the block.
Drammis inbounded under the basket. Jenkins set a screen on the baseline and sealed off her defender, allowing her to receive the pass and lay in the winning basket.
A Seahawks victory appeared unlikely as time ticked away during regulation. The Bobcats started the fourth quarter on a 12-0 run and held Hilton Head High without a field goal the first seven minutes of the final quarter.
But Bush's 3-pointer cut the deficit to two. And her layup with 2.3 seconds left in regulation sent the game to overtime.
Hilton Head High 47, Bluffton 46 (OT)
HILTON HEAD HIGH (15-4, 5-0 Region 7-AAA) -- Lauryn Bush 16, Sabrina Drammis 14, Americal Jenkins 10, Shy Flemming 2, Tashawna Washington 2, Macy King 1
BLUFFTON (14-4, 4-1) -- Tibra Wheeler 10, Dynasty Mervin 9, Jennifer Giles 9, Shakeria Kitty 6, Justice Hill 6, Alex Bailey 6
Bluffton boys 48, Hilton Head High 39
Bluffton boys basketball coach Brett Macy felt his team didn't practice well Monday and wasn't surprised at some of the sloppiness he detected Tuesday when the Bobcats hosted rival Hilton Head High.
But Bluffton overcame its sluggishness, using a 10-0 run during the third quarter to help provide the necessary cushion. The team's focus turns to Friday's home game with region-leading Lake Marion, which handed Bluffton its only region defeat to this point.
"It's never going to be pretty when you play your archrival like that," Macy said. "But we fought through it."
The Bobcats overcame 25 points, 14 rebounds and four blocks from Hilton Head High's Michael Julian.
Macy said the Bobcats' only play was to force Julian into tough shots. And the Seahawks' 6-foot-5 standout still buried them, including four 3-pointers.
Julian's consecutive 3-pointers with a little more than two minutes remaining brought the Seahawks within four points, but they didn't score after that.
"My kids played hard tonight and executed the game plan we established," Hilton Head High coach Ken Updike said. "Just a few plays from making it closer than it was. As a coach, you can't ask for anything more from your team."
HILTON HEAD HIGH (8-11, 2-3 Region 7-AAA) -- Michael Julian 25, Jacob Coltrane 4, Robbie Iulo 4, James Sanders 2, Alex MacDonald 2, Chris MacMurray 1, Bennett Murphy 1
BLUFFTON (13-2, 4-1) -- Dimitri Lowry 14, Bryson Bell 13, CJ Frazier 5, Harlan Kendrick 5, Demetrius Smalls 4, Michael Grant 4, Jeremy Scott 2, BJ Hill 1
