Gorman advances

Spencer Patterson

Wednesday, July 19, 2000 | 10:22 a.m.

Just because it's the middle of summer doesn't mean there's no place for an good old fashioned Sunset Region basketball game.

Local hoops fans very nearly got that treat at the adidas Big Time Tournament, as Bishop Gorman and Western played their way to the brink of an all-Las Vegas matchup in the event's "B" bracket.

The Gaels did their part, winning a pair of games on Tuesday to advance to today's semifinal round. But despite a valiant comeback in the closing moments, the Warriors came up three points short against the Arizona Heat to drop out of the tournament.

Playing without its six returning seniors -- Jason Carter, Justin Burns, Dinard Taylor, Paul Bania, Dyante Perkins and Jason Rogers -- Gorman continued its strong play this week, improving to 4-0 in bracket play.

The Gaels opened Tuesday with a 64-54 victory over the Hawaii Raiders. Juniors C.J. Watson and Brandon Knott, the team's most experienced players, combined to score 35 points in the win.

Later in the day, Gorman got 30 points from Watson, including 20 during a second half that saw the locals rally from a 13-point deficit to defeat ARC Burbank (Calif.) 69-63.

"I learned from my high school coach that you'll take a beating when you're young, but you'll learn," coach Robert Smith said. "If you play against better players all the time, you get better."

Western also got off to a good start on Tuesday, blasting the Rams of Oklahoma II 87-60. Center Tim Day scored 32 points and ripped down 21 rebounds in the rout.

With a matchup against rival Gorman looming, the Warriors fell behind the Arizona Heat in the second half of their Tuesday night contest. Trailing by 11 points in the closing minutes, the locals closed the gap with a furious comeback but ultimately fell 83-80. P.J. Stinette and Wendell West scored 18 points apiece.

The Gaels -- the last remaining area squad -- took on the Arizona Heat at 10:20 a.m. today at Green Valley High. With a win, Gorman would advance to the "B" division championship, slated for 5 p.m. at Green Valley.

Featuring players from the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and Cameroon, as well as several Florida natives, the squad pushed a talented Pump & Run (Calif.) club to the brink of elimination in one of Tuesday's most entertaining contests.

Team Breakdown took Pump & Run into overtime Monday before the Californians pulled out an 81-75 victory.