West Jordan 68, Orem 65
OGDEN — After winning his semi-final game Friday night, Orem Coach Greg Sheide was asked how he felt about playing West Jordan for the championship. He said he loved watching them play and called the Jaguars the "best rebounding team I've seen all year."
After West Jordan defeated the Tigers 68-65 for the 5A championship Saturday night, Sheide saw his nightmare realized.
"My biggest fear was that they'd beat us on the offensive boards," said a somber Sheide after Orem lost its chance at its first championship title in school history. "They killed us on the offensive boards."
West Jordan out-rebounded Orem on the offensive boards 19-3 and 35-17 overall. Both coaches said that turned the game in the Jaguars favor and allowed them to build a 13-point lead by half-time with their best offensive player (Stephon Mills) on the bench in foul trouble.
Only two West Jordan players didn't pull down at least one rebound. The Jaguars were led by senior Scott Judd, who finished with nine boards.
"He's a warrior," said West Jordan coach Scott Briggs. "He's quiet — a Mr. Nice Guy."
Briggs pointed out that it was Judd who went to the floor with two Orem players as they scrambled for the last ball being in-bounded by Orem with 1.3 seconds left in the game. He was also the one to go to the ground with 8.4 seconds left in the game fighting for a rebound after a teammate missed a foul shot.
Casey Springer was on the floor with him and he came up with the ball. He threw it to Brett Baldwin, whose only thought was dribbling out the clock, as West Jordan clung to a two-point lead.
Then in the most controversial moment of the thrilling game, Orem's Jonny Harline was called for an intentional foul with 8.4 seconds left in the game. West Jordan's Baldwin got two foul shots, which he made, and the Jaguars got the ball back. Then Scott Horspool was fouled on the inbound play, and he made both of his foul shots.
Horspool said he's more of a "streaky shooter" than a consistent prime-time player.
"All I could think about was how I'd thought about this my whole life, about being in this position in a game like this," Horspool said. "I was just thinking go in please."
And they did. Down the stretch, the junior center made five of seven from the foul line and finished with 11 points and five rebounds. After Horspool made those two shots, it gave the Jaguars a six-point lead with six seconds left.
Pat Thomas knocked down a long 3-point shot (his seventh of the night) to cut that lead in half. He kept the Tigers in the game with 33 points, only one of two Orem players in double digits.
But with just 1.3 seconds left, Judd came up with the ball on the inbound play and the buzzer sounded.
It signaled the end of the game, and the end of West Jordan's inablility to win a championship game. As the Jaguar team and fans flooded the floor of the Dee Events Center celebrating their first state basketball title in school history, coach Scott Briggs fell into his folding chair.
"I thought I'd just be excited, jumping around," he said, wiping his eyes. "But I was just sitting in this chair crying."
West Jordan boasts one of the state's best players in guard Stephon Mills, but it was good old fashioned team work that won the Jaguars their first title. Five players scored in double digits.
"It was 100 percent team work," Briggs said. "There's nothing more powerful than a group of guys all going in the same direction."
E-mail: adonaldson@desnews.com