Dec. 19--With his team trailing by five points with just more than a minute left Friday, Marian Catholic guard Brandon Hurt was one of the only people in the gym who thought the Spartans still had a shot.
The 6-foot-sophomore scored 11 of his team-high 14 points in the fourth quarter and two overtimes, leading No. 17 Marian Catholic to a 53-51 (2OT) win against No. 11 Benet in an East Suburban Catholic game in Chicago Heights.
"We're tough," said Hurt. "We just never give up."
"I think the whole gym considered us dead," Marian Catholic coach Mike Taylor added.
The Spartans (7-2, 2-0) ended the fourth quarter on a 7-2 run, with help from two fouls by Benet while Sean Taylor shot 3-pointers. Taylor made five of the six free throws, the last three with 29 seconds left to tie the score.
Benet (7-1, 1-1) missed a winning layup in regulation, but sent it to the second overtime on Jack Nolan's steal and layup with 39 seconds left.
Hurt drove the baseline for a three-point play 40 seconds into the second OT, and his free throws with 13 seconds left gave the Spartans a 52-48 lead. Jason Malonga (18 points) made a 3 to draw the Redwings within 52-51 before Hurt made one free throw with 5 seconds left.
Benet's last chance was a 25-footer by Dan Sobolewski that missed at the buzzer.
"We had a five-point lead and we're shooting free throws, but that's high school basketball," Benet coach Gene Heidkamp said. "We have to learn from this game and understand that we have to find a way to put them away."
Phil English is a freelance reporter for the Chicago Tribune.
Player of the game: Brandon Hurt, Marian Catholic, 14 points, 7 in OT, 11-13 FTs.
Key performers: Marian Catholic -- Austin Richie, 9 points; Sean Taylor, 8 points. Benet -- Jason Malonga, 18 points; Daniel Sobolewski, 12 points, 6 rebounds.
