St. Edward's McGuire bounces back to beat Fenton
St. Edward's J.P. McGuire didn't let his emotions overwhelm him late in Friday's boys basketball game against Fenton.
After missing a breakaway layup with just over a minute left in regulation in a one-possession game, McGuire bounded back by draining a 3-pointer to lead the Green Wave to a 44-40 win in Metro Suburban Red action.
McGuire, a junior guard, buried a corner 3 with 1:18 remaining to give the Green Wave (13-17, 4-8) a 40-38 lead. He missed the potential go-ahead layup earlier in the possession.
"I was thinking to myself that was the game and I was way down on myself after missing the layup," McGuire said. "All my teammates came and picked me up and made me feel good, and David (Hill) said I was going to get the next one, and I did get the next one. I was so filled with emotion, so happy and relieved that I made it. It was a nice rush of adrenaline."
Hill, a senior guard, also atoned for missing a free throw on the Green Wave's second-to-last possession. A few seconds later, Hill made two free throws with eight seconds left.
"It was a great all-around game," Hill said. "I was trying to put the game away with those free throws and win one for our team."
Hill paced the Green Wave with 18 points on 6-for-11 shooting, including 6 of 7 from the free-throw line. Daniel Parks hit a key shot and added two free throws in the fourth to finish with 11 points. Erik Hill had 9 points.
The Green Wave did not score until Hill's three-point play with 1:36 remaining in the first quarter, but it battled back by forcing turnovers and with a strong fourth quarter.
"It was a good win," St. Edward coach Andy Zielinski said. "The kids gutted it out and had to come back a couple of times. I thought we did a nice job defensively. I'm proud of them. They stepped up. We're really young. It was nice to see them finish for a change."
The Bison (8-19, 4-8) nearly pulled out the win until a flood of mistakes hurt them in the fourth. Fenton committed 8 fourth-quarter turnovers and scored just 2 points in the final 3:19.
Junior forward Diamon King overcame a slow start to finish with a game-high 21 points, including 12 in the third quarter. The 6-foot-2 King overpowered the Green Wave in the paint, scoring six baskets in a nine-possession stretch in the third. But the Bison missed three 3s in the final 70 seconds.
"Diamon is our guy and been playing great all year and the ball goes through him," Fenton coach Chaz Taft said. "But we're looking for other guys to step up. We gave up too many offensive rebounds. They are scrappy and tough."