There are tough ways to lose a game, and then there’s what the Manila (Utah) High School squad just went through.
Facing off against Tabiona (Utah) High at home on Senior Night, Manila found itself knotted in a 44-44 tie, with time for one more miracle attempt when it earned an inbounds under the Tabiona basket with just seconds remaining.
What happened next, well, see for yourself:
The killer here, of course, is that Tabiona actually defended that play pretty darned well. It cut off all the preferred perimeter options as none were open. Garrett Slaugh — that’s who we think is the young man pulling this out — got the ball, but he was blocked off from a decent look at the basket. In fact, the only shot he had was an over-the-head, backwards, good luck heave.
Apparently Slaugh had been saying his Hail Mary’s, because the desperation move delivered, and Manila escaped with the wildest of wins, 46-44.
The victory improved the Mustangs to 15-6 on the season and 7-1 in the region, locking in a berth in the forthcoming Utah Class 1A playoffs. It’s a nice pay off for a wild bucket that no one will forget anytime soon.
