BASKETBALL | New Iberia free throws sink Walker in overtime in semifinals

“We just had a few lapses,” Walker coach Anthony Schiro said. “We had a few lapses offensively where we had some droughts. We did some really good things early. We got the lead. We got the game to our advantage and the pace we liked it, and then we had some lapses where we couldn’t put the ball in the hole. Great job by New Iberia for them flipping it around getting the game back into their pace.”

“If you look at their scores throughout the season, New Iberia has a lot of low-scoring games, and that’s because they play good defense,” Schiro continued. “To their credit, yeah, their defense was good. I think that made us miss a few shots and a couple of things here and there, but I think we missed a few easy ones that we could have converted on that would have made a difference for us. Especially when we got a few leads, we could have kind of converted on some of those easy ones that were maybe some missed opportunities.”

New Iberia will face No. 3 Ponchatoula, which defeated Ruston 62-55, in the championship game at 8 p.m. Saturday.

“This is us,” New Iberia coach Chad Pourciau said after his team went 9-for-12 from the line in overtime. “I don’t know how we do it, but we find a way. Late, I felt we finally got control of the game. They really want to get up and down, and we wanted to make it a half-court basketball game. We felt like we were better there, and I think that’s why we beat them in overtime – we made it a half-court basketball game.”

New Iberia’s Christian Walker missed a 3-pointer in the waning seconds of regulation, sending the game into overtime.

There, the Yellow Jackets won the tip-off and worked the ball around while chewing up time on the clock.

New Iberia’s Walker missed a 3-pointer, but the Yellow Jackets came up with the save on the rebound, kicked the ball back out and spread the floor.

“Unfortunately, I think it hit the side of the backboard, had a long rebound, and it bounced into their advantage,” Schiro said of the shot. “You can’t really get upset with our guys for missing that rebound because you don’t expect it to hit the corner of backboard and bounce way off somewhere else. If we would have got that stop and got that rebound, we might have had a chance to go score and take the lead.”

With 1:10 left, Wayne Randall drove to the basket and was fouled by Walker’s Mekhi Varnado, who fouled out, finishing with two points and five rebounds.

Randall, who finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds, sank both free throws to put New Iberia ahead 40-38 for its first lead of the game.

The Wildcats missed a shot, and New Iberia came down with the rebound, resulting in a foul on Austin Delahoussaye, who hit one free throw.

Another Walker miss and New Iberia rebound ended in another foul on Delahoussaye by Walker’s Ja’Cory Thomas, who fouled out with 47.3 seconds left. Delahoussaye, who had 11 points, hit both free throws for a 43-38 lead.

Thomas picked up two fouls in the first quarter and got his fourth on a charge with 4:50 to play in the third quarter, which limited his minutes. He finished with four points and three rebounds.

“Ja’Cory is a big-time athlete for us, big-time defensive player for us,” Schiro said. “He can score on the low block. Heck, I don’t even know how many minutes he got to play tonight. He picked up two quick fouls. He had two fouls in the first two minutes of the game, so that just alters the complexion of what we can do a lot of times. I’ll give our freshman Braylen Montgomery credit. I think he played a heck of a game defensively … Did a great job when we asked him to step up. Of course, with Mekhi getting in foul trouble … it just changes some of the things you’re able to do and takes away some of the advantage you have.”

Warren Young Jr. hit two baskets and a free throw for Walker, getting the Wildcats within three points three times – the last at 46-43 with 14.1 seconds left before New Iberia’s Walker hit a free throw with .2 of a second left for the final margin.

Young, who finished with 14 points and six rebounds, scored all five of Walker’s points in overtime.

“When we’re down like that, in my mind, it’s just like I’ve got to go get the bucket to bring my team back in, and that’s what I was trying to do,” Young said.

Walker went 5-for-8 at the line in the game, while New Iberia was 18-for-25. The Wildcats had 16 turnovers, while New Iberia had 10, and the Yellow Jackets had 13 offensive rebounds to six for Walker.

“Everything we asked them to do, they did, and that’s why we won,” Pourciau said.

The Wildcats led 33-29 going into the fourth quarter and went up 38-31 on Clifford Smith-Johnson’s 3-pointer from the top of the key. New Iberia’s Walker answered with a 3-pointer before the Yellow Jackets went 4-for-4 at the line, tying the game at 38-38 on Randall’s free throws with 3:08 left.

The Wildcats were called for a travel with three minutes to play, and New Iberia maintained possession for the majority of the remaining time in regulation, working the ball around deliberately.

New Iberia’s Walker missed a 3-point attempt, and Young came down with a rebound but missed a shot. Walker’s Thomas got a rebound off a missed shot, but the Wildcats turned the ball over with 58.6 seconds left, allowing New Iberia to work the ball around, setting up the end of regulation.

The Wildcats led 21-20 at halftime and the advantage fluctuated between one and three points five times before Randall completed a three-point play to tie the score at 27-27 with 2:26 to play in the third quarter.

Young got a putback and Brandon Bardales a basket off a steal to put Walker ahead 31-27. The Yellow Jackets got within 31-29, but Kedric Brown hit a pair of free throws with 2.2 seconds left in the quarter for a 33-29 lead after New Iberia missed a 3-point attempt near mid-court that went off the rim at the buzzer.

Brown was the Wildcats’ only other double-digit scorer, finishing with 10 points and five rebounds, while Bardales added eight points and four rebounds.

Walker led 14-10 going into the second quarter and pulled ahead 19-10 on Bardales’ 3-pointer. But New Iberia chipped away, cutting the lead to 19-18 on Kylan Dugas’ jumper in the lane.

The Wildcats went 4-for-10 from 3-point range, while New Iberia was 3-for-20.

“I’ll take 40 percent on the night,” Schiro said. “Taking 10 threes isn’t too bad. Like I said, we just had some times where we couldn’t put the ball in the hole.”

Varnado’s basket put Walker ahead 21-18 before Delahoussaye hit two free throws for the halftime score.

Walker jumped out to a 7-0 lead on Young’s 3-pointer and went ahead 14-5 on Bardales’ trey before New Iberia’s Walker scored the final five points of the quarter.

“I thought we did a great job in transition, and if we could have kept it there, I think we would have had a lot more success,” Schiro said.

Young had seven points to pace the Wildcats in the first quarter.

“I was just trying to do whatever I’ve got to do to help my team be successful, and tonight, I didn’t do enough,” Young said.

Brown reflected on the Wildcats’ season.

“We had a great season,” he said. “We went 29-5, and we started a lot of seniors. We just played hard every night, and it just didn’t end the way we wanted it to.”