Honer came through in clutch for Douglas

Spencer Patterson

Thursday, March 14, 2002 | 10:33 a.m.

Four seconds. That's all that remained in Andrea Honer's basketball career, unless her Douglas Tigers could find a way to rally from three points down in last month's 4A state championship against Centennial.

Timeout, Douglas. Time to talk things over.

Throughout her four-year career as the Tigers' varsity point guard, Honer had built her reputation as an unselfish playmaker, passing up shots to get teammates involved.

Even as a senior, when Honer was the top threat on her team, she often preferred to set up others, assisting on 9.8 buckets per game to go with 10.2 points of her own.

But this time, Honer wanted the ball in her hands.

"I didn't even think about giving it up, which isn't really me," Honer said. "I wanted the shot, and if my coach had said, 'Let's give it to someone else,' I would have said, 'I want the ball in my hands.' "

Honer received the inbounds pass and calmly knocked down a buzzer-beating 3-pointer, sending the game into a second overtime.

Though the Tigers ultimately lost, Honer's heroics made this year's championship one for the ages. Her improbable shot -- the final act in a season that saw Douglas ascend to unexpected heights -- also clinched her selection as the Sun's 2002 State Player of the Year.

"We don't have a lot of stars on the team, but Andrea quietly helped the other players get it done," Douglas coach Werner Christian said. "They were a mature, smart team and Andrea was a big part of that."

Honer's clutch shot against Centennial came just 10 days after her driving layup in the closing seconds sent the Tigers' first-round Northern Region playoff game with Galena into overtime.

That eventual victory kicked off a postseason run that saw Douglas upset favored Churchill County, then hold off Carson for the regional title before downing Western and Bishop Gorman in the state tournament to reach the finals.

"We couldn't have asked any more from her in the playoffs," Christian said. "She was never satisfied. She just works and works."

Nevada-Reno has offered Honer a scholarship, and she is also considering out-of-state options including St. Mary's (Calif.), Kansas, Xavier, and Lehigh.

Despite her team's tough loss in the finals, the Douglas senior will remember the 2001-2002 season with pride.

"Right after the game I was heartbroken, but now looking back on it, I'm amazed at what we achieved as a team," Honer said. "We left everything on the floor."