WASHINGTON, D.C. — They call him "The Assassin" and for good reason.
Patrick Holloway, a senior guard with
Xcellent 25 No. 9 team
Paul VI (Fairfax, Va.), has hit tons of big shots throughout his career. But there might not have been a bigger shot he's hit than the one he sank Monday night against
DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.) in the Washington Cathloic Athletic Conference championship game, held at American University.
Coming out of a timeout with 19 seconds to go, Paul VI coach Glenn Farello drew a play for Holloway to receive a handoff on the right wing. Holloway dribbled left, with a switched defender stride for stride. But once he was near the left elbow, The Assassin marked his target, stopped and pump faked. With his defender in the air, Holloway rose up and released. It was a tough, contested shot, but one that was nothing short of perfect.
"It was a hard shot to make," Holloway said. "He jumped for (the pump fake). I knew they would be aggressive because I was planning on shooting the ball with time running out."
As the ball fell through, Holloway turned, jumped and pumped his fist as his Panthers had just gone up 55-54 with only 10 seconds left to play. Following two timeouts (one by each team) with 2.7 seconds remaining, DeMatha senior guard
James Robinson had a decent mid-range look to win the game. His shot fell just short, hitting the front of the rim and bouncing right of the basket.
"We had exactly what we wanted," DeMatha coach Mike Jones said. "We had James with a shot that fell an inch short."
When the buzzer sounded, the Paul VI student section rushed the court to celebrate the team's perfect WCAC season, one that ended with 21 conference wins and zero losses. According to Farello, the Panthers posted the most single-season wins in conference history.
Paul VI's senior class was the first Farello — now in his fifth season — has seen play all four years.
"We wanted to build a powerhouse over at Paul VI," Farello said. "We found the right mix of kids and parents that believe in what we're doing."
Said Holloway: "We've been together for three or four years now. We've built camaraderie. We built a team. We're not just teammates on the court. Off the court, we have each other's backs."
Much like all three games between these two teams this season, it wasn't free of drama. When Paul VI (29-2) called a timeout after DeMatha called one with 2.7 seconds to go in the game, it was believed the Panthers were out of timeouts — at least according to the electronic scoreboard. If the Panthers were indeed out of timeouts, it would have resulted in a technical foul.
After a discussion at the scorer's table, it was ruled Paul VI had one timeout left to call, much to Jones' dismay.
"I did not think they had (a timeout)," Jones said. "But obviously they did. I can't argue. The official book had it."
After holding a 15-14 advantage at the 2:48 mark in the first quarter, DeMatha (27-5) didn't relinquish its lead until 19 seconds to go in the game. The Stags were always in striking distance, yet the Panthers had an answer for each one of DeMatha's runs. The Stags were able to momentarily regain the lead late in the game when junior guard
Jairus Lyles drove hard to his left and laid in a bucket while being fouled. Lyles sank the free throw to give DeMatha a 54-53 lead. Lyles led DeMatha in scoring with 13 points.
Nine seconds later, The Assassin sank his basket which gave Paul VI its third close win against DeMatha this season. In the teams' first meeting at Paul VI's home court, the Panthers squeaked out a 64-62 thriller. On Feb. 19, Paul VI earned a 58-55 win over the Stags on DeMatha's floor. In the three games combined, Paul VI has edged DeMatha by just six points.
"People say to me all the time, 'Hopefully y'all can beat them again like that,'" said Holloway, who scored 11 points. "I said hopefully not. Hopefully it doesn't have to get to that. Hopefully we can just win. But it came down to one of the last shots."
The game began at a frantic pace, with Paul VI winning the tip and senior guard
Tilman Dunbar laying in a basket in 5 seconds. Down 6-4, Paul VI junior guard
Stanford Robinson threw a beautiful alley-oop to senior forward
Coleman Johnson to tie the game at 6.
Ted at 18 with 1:35 to play in the opening period, Holloway hit a 3-pointer, which was followed by a bucket from junior forward
Jamall Robinson, who led Paul VI in scoring with 13 points. This gave Paul VI a 23-18 lead after the first quarter.
Down 31-25 late in the second, DeMatha guard
Marcellous Bell hit two 3-pointers to keep the Stags down just 34-31 at halftime.
Both teams kept the defensive intensity turned up a notch in the third quarter, as the Panthers held just a 45-40 advantage heading into the final period of play.
DeMatha came into this game with heavy hearts following the death of Stags football player Rico Brown, who signed a letter of intent to play college football at Alabama State earlier in February. Webb died early Sunday from a blood clot that traveled to his lungs. During the contest, DeMatha's student section occasionally chanted, "We love Rico."
Following Paul VI's WCAC championship, the Panthers are now scheduled to play Coolidge (Washington, D.C.) in the Abe Pollin City Title Game on March 12 at the Verizon Center.
"To run blackjack (21 wins) in the WCAC is incredible," Farello said.
