Hawks fall short

VICTORVILLE • The Silverado boys basketball team rallied in the fourth quarter, but it wasn’t enough to overcome its shooting struggles earlier in the game.

The Hawks (16-9) lost to Upland 53-49 in the first round of the CIF-Southern Section Division I-AA playoffs Wednesday night at home.

“We just didn’t shoot the ball well,” Silverado coach Pat Brannon said. “But I’m so proud of the way the boys battled. They battled from start to finish.”

Outscoring Upland 20-12 in the final quarter, the Desert Sky League champion tied the game at 49 with 42.1 seconds left in regulation. Senior guard Kintin Scott scored on a lay-up and drew a foul. He made the free throw to tie it up.

Then Upland’s DJ Coleman sank two free throws to put his team ahead.

Hawks guard Stephen Johnson drove to the basket and took a shot with less than 10 seconds left, but it didn’t go in and Upland center Zach Robbins grabbed the rebound. He was fouled immediately and made two free throws to finish off the game.

Hawks senior center Darius McGee had his biggest game of the season to carry his team and conclude his high school basketball career. He tallied a team-high 23 points and 18 rebounds with three blocks, three steals and three assists.

“I just tried to put my team on my shoulders and just bring us back but it wasn’t good enough,” McGee said.

But the rest of the Hawks just couldn’t seem to find their shooting touch. Scott added 13 points, nine in the fourth, but made only 4 of 20 field goals.

The game started out quite smoothly for Silverado. The Hawks figured out a way to get around Upland’s half-court zone trap and led 12-10 at the end of the first. McGee contained the 6-foot-9 Robbins to just 10 points, even out-rebounding him.

“He was pretty big inside, but I just listened to what my coach said, just stand strong and just stand my ground,” McGee said. “I played good against him.”

But the Silverado starters began to show fatigue in the second quarter, and Upland went on to a 9-0 run to take a 24-18 lead. The Hawks had to play without Sammy Hicks, who injured his ankle prior to the game.

“We were just a little short-handed and I had to play players almost the entire game, whereas normally we would get a rotation going,” Brannon said. “We just had to play players a little bit too long, and maybe their legs weren’t quite where they needed to be.”

Upland sophomore guard John Gilliam shot 4-for-4 from behind the 3-point line to finish with 26 points.

Although the Hawks failed to advanced to the second round of the playoffs — where they could have faced nationally top-ranked Mater Dei — they’ve already done something few people expected them to. Improving from 0-8 in league from last year to an 8-0 perfect run.

“We just wanted to get Silverado back to that feeling that we belong in the playoffs every year,” Brannon said. “And that’s what the boys did. They took this team and they’ve taken it back to the level where it’s supposed to be at.”

UPLAND (53)
Gilliam 26, Robbins 10, Coleman 7, Stark 4, Powell 3, Nichols 2, Pearson 1.
SILVERADO (49)
McGee 23, Scott 13, Woodard 6, Johnson 3, Gaines 2, Jenkins 2.

Upland 10 14 17 12 — 53
Silverado 12 8 9 20 — 49

3-point field goals — Upland 6 (Gilliam 4, Coleman, Powell); Silverado 2 (Scott, Johnson).

Tomoya Shimura can be reached at tshimura@vvdailypress.com or 951-6281.