- During their sensational 2007-2008 season drive, the Decatur High School boys basketball team played scintillating games that came down to the wire.

At the Tacoma Dome, three out of four games were decided on the last possession, but two of the three games resulted in losses.

On the afternoon of Saturday, March 1, two familiar adversaries returned to thwart a Decatur try for triumph in another final possession encounter.

At West Central District, junior guards Abdul Gaddy and Avery Bradley led the Bellarmine Prep Lions past the Gators (20-8) in a 66-62 winner-to-state fracas to force Decatur into consecutive loser-out games to qualify for state.

The combination of Gaddy and Bradley did it again in a 62-59 Bellarmine Prep win against Decatur on Saturday to claim third place and assign the Gators to sixth place at the 2008 WIAA/Dairy Farmers of Washington/Les Schwab Tires 4A state tournament.

Trailing by three points with 9.8 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, the Gators set up a play to clear out leading scorer Marcus Tibbs for a three-point try. The senior guard, who completed the game with 20 points despite losing a contact lens twice during the game, fumbled the inbounds pass before dribbling towards the top of the key with Bradley defensing him.

As Tibbs elevated for the equalizing effort, Bradley rose to the occasion and whacked the shot away to ring down the curtain on the frenzied fray.

"We gave a good effort," Decatur coach Kevin Olson declared. "We had our chances and just didn't finish it."

Both teams stumbled through the early action, showing the strain after absorbing losses in intense semifinal games on Friday night.

Showing great heart and courage, the Gators took command in the second quarter, utilizing a 22-16 scoring surge, including 12 points in the final 2:20 of the first half to take a 32-27 halftime command. Michael Hale's penetration drive and score lifted Decatur to a 34-27 margin to open the second half.

As the battle continued, the squads exchanged scoring runs in a game that featured 21 lead changes.

Decatur grabbed a 48-47 advantage on a Tibbs pull up jumper inside the free throw line with 6:51 to play before Bellarmine Prep regained the lead on Jordan Cain's basket 30 seconds later.

Down the stretch, the Gators were unable to retake the lead and trailed by as many as four points until Jerron Smith's basket drew Decatur within 61-59 at the 16.1 second mark. Three seconds later, Gaddy coverted a free throw to set the stage for the engrossing end.

Darious Walker scored 13 points and snared seven rebounds in his final high school game.

Gaddy plagued the Gators for 26 points and 12 rebounds for the Lions while Bradley added 19 points.

"Darious and Marcus have been unbelievable for this program," recalled Olson. "They really left it out there. Our ultimate goal was to play on Saturday and we came within a fraction of an inch from reaching the finals. I'm proud of bringing home a trophy."

This year was the second occasion in school history the Gators took home state hardware. Decatur's mightiest finish was second in 1996, when it was stymied by Sehome of Bellingham, arguably the best single season 4A team in the history of the tournament.

Tibbs took a few moments to reflect upon his experiences.

"This game we came out to have fun and not sit and cry about last night," he said. "We tried to win today, but it didn't go our way. Coming here, we played two loser-out games. Every day was a challenge. We always gave our best, and that took us as far as we could go."

Another senior voiced his thoughts.

"I felt way different at state," said KJ Hong. "It was harder, but it was a great experience in my first year as a varsity player."

Top scorers Tibbs and Walker graduate along with twins KJ and Kevin Hong, but the team retains several key players next season.

Junior point guard Michael Hale will be back to hone his phenomenal skills as a senior. Olson also specified additional juniors 6-foot-5 Cam Schilling, 6-foot-5 Jordan McCloud and 6-foot-3 freshman Jerron Smith as top returners.

Hale joined Tibbs on the all-tournament second team while Smith scored 15 points in the title match up, including his team's last four points.

"Smith really came through for us," Olson concluded. "He's going to be a big part of what we do next year. It was a great experience for him."

Schilling was Decatur's dynamic defensive stopper all season and fired three-point seeking missiles from the perimeter. McCloud's put back with 1.3 seconds left beat Shadle Park in the quarterfinals Thursday, 63-61.

Decatur's state sixth place player roster includes Jordan Rawls, Marcus Tibbs, KJ Hong, Michael Hale III, Jerron Smith, Kevin Hong, Cam Schilling, Terrell Williams, Darious Walker, Jordan McCloud, Kramer Stuth and Lorenzo Holcomb.

Olson's assistant coaches are Brent Brilhante, Steven Richardson, Kyle Templeton and James Van Stralen. Shaude Moore is the student manager.