By Gerardo Bolong

CONTRIBUTING WRITER

It was a seemingly easy encounter that turned into a nail biter. 

In a game they once led by 20 points, the North Division Foster boys took it to the limit before eking out a South Puget Sound League 2A win against West Division Foss at home on Thurs., Jan. 16.

Trailing 52-51 following a Bulldog basket from Nasir Graves with 1:25 remaining in the fourth quarter. Foster immediately called time out to set up the defense. 

A jump ball left the Falcons from Tacoma with an out of bounds play as 48.2 seconds showed.

Foss got the ball inside the paint, but were the victims of a blocked shot.

Seizing the ball on the run, Jamari Severson ran the court and eluded a final defender for a lay up with just more than 35 seconds left for a Bulldog 53-52 lead.

”The guard was a smaller player who kept going under to swipe the ball,”

said Severson. “I was bigger, so I just went over him.”

The Bulldogs still had to stop their relentless foes.

Against a 2-2-1 full court zone press, the Falcons were able to get the ball inside for two inside shots. Six-foot, six-inch center Mirza Djuderija kept batting the ball until the final lay up rolled off the rim just before the buzzer ended regulation play.

"I watched the Lakers lose to Orlando by one point and had a bad feeling,” said Foster head coach Robert Graham, Sr. “I didn’t want us to lose by one point. This game was big because we showed that we could come back. They have good guards, but we do, too. Mirza’s three-pointer and free throws were big. When their last shot rolled off the rim and the buzzer blew, it was the sweetest sound I’ve heard in a long time.”

The eighth consecutive victory by the Bulldogs (8-1 North and 8-4 overall) kept them one game behind Lindbergh, setting up a visit by the Eagles to Foster on Mon., Jan. 20. 

Foster lost at Lindbergh, 62-59, on Dec. 13. 

For the first half of the game, last minute heroics appeared to be unnecessary.

In the first quarter, Foster dialed up a furious frequency of intensity for an 8-0 run that created a 10-2 first quarter lead. 

Quick offensive movement and continuous steals continued for lead extensions to 12 and 14 points before Markell Jackson's steal and lay up provided the Bulldogs a 22-6 margin after one quarter. 

Jackson was on fire for eight points on a pair of three-balls and two standard goals while teammate Nasir Graves also had a big quarter. 

Foster continued to steal the ball and Foss was unable to convert baskets. The Bulldogs often limited the Falcons to one-shot possessions to establish a 20 point lead en route to a 34-16 halftime control. Isaiah Ford was the main catalyst for Foster in the second quarter. 

Foss continued its pursuit of Foster by scoring 11 straight points to open the second half and trail 34-27. 

Severson notched a basket to interrupt the Falcon scoring run, but the FHS rhythm and movement were stalled. 

The Falcons fired off 14 more points in a row against the slumping Bulldogs to lead 41-36. going into the final quarter. 

With starter Nyel Hair unavailable due to sickness, Foster rotated players as well as they could, but still trailed 43-38 early in the fourth quarter. 

Djuderija  scored inside ahead of a Graves basket inside to trim the Bulldog deficit to 43-42 with 5:52 on the clock, but Yusuf Kibira answered with a basket for Foss. 

Ford cleared himself for a lay up only to have Kibira respond with a basket to extend the Foss margin to 47-44. 

Just less than three minutes were left when Djuderija nailed two free throws that were countered by a Kibira three-pointer. 

Undaunted, Djuderija set himself in the corner to swish home a three-point goal that made the score 50-49 Foss as 1:55 showed. 

Caleb McCorry was fouled on a driving lay up attempt and drained the free throws to once again extend the Falcon margin ahead of the final epiphanies of the game. 

"The third quarter was frustrating," said Ford. "I just trusted my teammates and kept a proper mindset." 

Jackson paced all Bulldog scorers at 19 points.  Ford finished with 12 points as Graves and Djuderija each contributed seven points. Graves also had seven assists. Severson earned six and Robert Johnson totaled two. 

For Foss, Alex Glenn posted 19 points. Also in double figures were  McCorry (13) and Jazuan King (10).