By By STEVE FRANKLIN,Sports Writer
Jarees Griffin threw his hands on his head and arched his neck towards the sky in disbelief. Lindsay Harris turned and kicked his chair. And Washington coach Joe Lawrence could only nod his head with disappointment.
The Pam Pack’s season of frustration reached a boiling point Wednesday night, as Washington squandered a 12-point lead in the final 10 minutes, falling to West Carteret, 53-51, thanks to a three-point shot from Patriots’ forward Chase Cannon with 7.8 seconds remaining.
Washington built a double-digit lead early as it held West Carteret without a point for the first six minutes of the contest, as the Pack raced out to a 10-0 lead.
West Carteret chipped away at the lead on several occasions, but for the better part of three quarters could get no closer than seven points.
With less than two minutes left in the third quarter, the Pam Pack built its largest lead of the night, as Harris drained a three-point shot and Jarees Griffin tipped back an errant shot to put Washington ahead 42-30.
But over the next four minutes, West Carteret went on a 13-0 run to grab its first lead of the game with 5:55 remaining.
Patriots’ center Zach Sowell got the run started with a layup and guard Alex Godette connected on a three-point shot in the final minute of the third to make it 42-35 heading to the fourth quarter.
Then to open the fourth, guard Jeremy Wilson scored six straight points, before Sowell lofted in a jump hook to put the Pats ahead.
For the next four minutes, the teams continued to trade baskets.
Washington went ahead by three points on a Griffin tip-in with 2:18 left to give the Pack a 49-46 lead.
But West Carteret got a layup from Cannon and another from Matt Tucker to take a 50-49 lead with 1:11 left.
Washington answered back eight seconds later as Mike Moore delivered a hard pass inside to forward Brandon Tripp, who made an easy layup to give Washington a 51-50 lead.
Washington had a chance to extend its lead with 19 seconds left, but Mike Godley misfired on the front end of a one-and-one, giving the Pats an opportunity to take the lead.
That’s when Cannon, who scored all eight of his points in the final five minutes, stepped up and knocked down the game-winner.
Griffin led the Pam Pack (8-8, 2-7) with 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Mike Moore added 12 points. West Carteret was led by Sowell with 16 points and 14 rebounds.
Lady Pack ends losing skid
For the first time in nearly a month, the Lady Pam Pack find themselves in the win column.
Harmony Simpkins scored 22 points, and Jordan Cantrell added 17 points and 12 rebounds as Washington snapped a five-game losing steak by upsetting West Carteret 51-47.
Washington (7-9, 2-7) let a 10-point first half lead slip away, and fell behind by as many as six points in the third quarter.
But Simpkins and Cantrell put the Lady Pack on their backs late, as they combined for 13 fourth quarter points to help Washington pull off the upset of West Carteret (11-6, 6-4), which sits third in the Coastal Conference standings.
West Carteret 4 15 16 18 — 53
Washington 14 12 16 9 — 51
West Carteret (53)
Zach Sowell 16, Jeremy Wilson 12, Godette 6, Cannon 8, McCall 2, Tucker 7, Tupaz 2.
Washington (51)
Jarees Griffin 16, Mike Moore 12, Langley 9, Tripp 6, Chase 3, Harris 3, Horton 2.
Girls
West Carteret 6 14 14 13 — 47
Washington 16 8 9 18 — 51
West Carteret (47)
Bianca Gray 13, Lauren Morris 13, Lauren Pearce 10, Mansfield 7, Barnes 1, Moore 3.
Washington (51)
Harmony Simpkins 22, Jordan Cantrell 17, Batchelor 5, Burke 5, Grice 2.