Gaels reclaim state basketball title

Spencer Patterson

Friday, Feb. 22, 2002 | 10:20 a.m.

RENO -- After battling into overtime in 2000 and squandering a 14-point lead last year, Bishop Gorman's boys basketball team left nothing to chance in their third-straight state championship appearance.

The Gaels scored the first basket and never trailed in a 71-61 win over Cheyenne, claiming their second NIAA/U.S. Bank 4A state title in three years at Nevada-Reno's Lawlor Events Center Friday night.

Senior guard C.J. Watson, widely considered Nevada's top prep player, led the way with 35 points, seven rebounds, six assists and six steals, and hit on 19 of his 20 attempts from the free-throw line.

"C.J. definitely was on a mission," said Gorman coach Grant Rice, who led the Las Vegas private school to its 10th state championship in his first season at the helm.

"We could tell after last night when we found out we were going against Cheyenne, because we lost to them last week and (Watson) took that personally," Rice added, referring to the Desert Shields' six-point victory over the Gaels in last week's Sunset Region finale. "The last 24 hours, he hasn't said a word to anyone. He was all business."

Leading 33-28 at the half, Gorman (28-6) methodically stretched out the lead over the second half, with Watson scoring 22 of his points after the break. His 3-point shot with 2:30 to play gave the Gaels an 18-point advantage, their biggest of the night.

"We knew we had the game tonight if we just played under control," said Watson, a Tennessee signee. "We weren't going to let it slip away this year."

The Desert Shields (30-5), who also lost in the 1999 state title game, looked out of sync from the opening tip, falling behind 31-16 in the first half. Leading scorer Johnny Wheeler turned the ball over seven times before halftime and Cheyenne coach Larry Johnson kept point guard Keith Richardson on the bench for the entire second quarter.

Despite their early miscues, the Shields made a late 12-2 run to end the second quarter, capped off by Greg Barlow's 3-point play with three seconds remaining to get back into the ballgame.

Gorman's senior class then took over, with Watson, Brandon Knott, Joe Anderson and Jason Smith scoring all 21 of their team's third-quarter points to push the lead back to 10 points, 54-44.

Cheyenne got as close as seven, 56-49, with 5:46 remaining, but Watson and Anderson combined for the game's next 11 points to put the game out of reach.

Anderson finished with 12 points and four assists and Knott wound up with 10 points and eight rebounds in their final high school games. Junior Mark Hill also had a strong night, grabbing 11 rebounds to go with eight points.

"It's a great feeling, especially for those kids," Rice said. "They've been through a lot these last three years, with three different head coaches. It's fitting these guys should end it like this."

Wheeler ended up with 17 points to lead the Shields, who also got 13 points from Lorenzo Wade and 10 from Keith Richardson. Kevin Richardson added six rebounds.

Gorman also won state titles in 2000, 1997 '89, '88, '84, '79, '78, '63 and '62.