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SACRAMENTO — What looked like a blowout turned into a frantic run to the finish. What seemed like a historic night for Chino Hills big man Onyeka Okongwu ended with more than a quarter to play.
When the USC-bound big fella fouled out with 90 seconds left in the third period, James Logan made its push.
The Colts had their own foul problems — losing power forward Daniel Combs early in the third quarter and league MVP Brett Thompson with 4:12 to go — but they kept on the metaphoric treadmill, as their coach likes to say, and darn near pulled it out.
But when the clock stuck zero, Chino Hills rushed the court Friday night to celebrate back-to-back Division I state championships.
The Huskies held on for a 69-63 victory at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.
The outcome left many Colts in tears as their dream of becoming the Union City school’s first state basketball champion fell just short.
“This team is resilient,” said Logan senior Gabriel Hawkins, who finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds. “We fight to the end no matter who we are playing, no matter what the obstacle is. We’ll fight with anybody. I said that at the beginning of the season and right now. We left it all on the court. That’s all you can ask for.”
Well, on this night, Logan could have asked for a little more. The backbreaking play came with 33.5 seconds left and Chino Hills up four.
Hawkins went up for a 3-point shot and ended up on the ground.
Logan (27-7) wanted him at the line for three free throws. Instead, the officials called an offensive foul on Hawkins.
“It’s tough, man,” said Hawkins, who played on Logan’s Division I state runner-up team two seasons ago. “I’ve never really seen that call called before. But it is what it is.”
Coach Melvin Easley felt the same way.
“I’m not one to talk about calls or anything,” he said. “But I questioned a call on a momentum swing, on a 3-point shot. I’ve never seen that. I’ve never seen a charge called on a 3-point shot like that.”
The officiating also frustrated the winners. Chino Hills was cruising after halftime, leading by double digits as Okongwu towered over smaller defenders, disrupted shots and found open teammates when Logan swarmed him.
But the big guy, who had two fouls at halftime, was called for three fouls in the third quarter, the last on a charge that Hawkins took with 1:30 left in the period.
The offensive foul ended Okongwu’s high school career and sent a bolt of electricity through the Colts even though Chino Hills led by 15 points.
“Tremendous performance by these guys,” Chino Hills coach Dennis Latimore said as he sat next to Okongwu during a postgame news conference. “The fella to my left, 26 points and 15 rebounds in three quarters. Unfortunately five fouls, which I feel quite frankly is ridiculous. Very upset about that, the reffing. Make the clear.”
Chino Hills (25-10) still led by 14 points after three quarters, but it was clear from the outset of the final period that Logan was in attack mode.
Brah’Jon Thompson’s 3-pointer cut the deficit to single digits, and Tim Oldham’s drive pulled Logan to within 62-56 with 2:49 to go.
Oldham slice to the basket with two minutes left made it 62-58, and Hawkins’ three-point play with 1:29 remaining brought the Colts to within 63-61.
“I thought we had a comeback,” Logan senior Malcolm Steadman said. “We had some momentum. But sadly we didn’t take the W.”
In addition to 26 points and 15 rebounds, Okongwu had five assists and three blocks. He played only 22 minutes.
“We were up for the challenge,” Easley said. “We’ve faced adversity like that before, the Branson game, the Folsom game. All had solid big men. It’s tough because the game is about emotion for us. We play with our emotion. We put everything we can on that floor. The big man was a factor for sure, no doubt. Skilled player. But for us, it was just another challenge.”
Okongwu finished his career with three state championships. He was on the school’s Open Division champion in 2016 that featured the Ball brothers (Lonzo, LiAngelo and LaMelo) and led the Huskies to a win over Las Lomas in the Division I state final last season.
“I’ve been saying since I’ve known the kid, he’s definitely the best big man in the state of California,” said Latimore, who took over the program last season. “I think he’s the best big man in the nation. His effiency is unbelievable. You look at his stats as a career, at least the two seasons I’ve been here, he’s shooting 70 percent from the field, 85-90 percent from the free-throw line, 10-12 rebounds a game, 6-7 blocks a game. A bad game for this kid is 25 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks. I think he’s one of the greatest high school players out there.”
Brah’Jon Thompson finished with 19 points and three steals for Logan, and his cousin, Brett Thompson, had 13 points, five rebounds and three assists.
Will Pluma scored 18 points for Chino Hills, including big 3-pointers in the first half when the Huskies turned an early deficit into a double-digit advantage.
Five players fouled out — Okongwu and Nick Manor Hall for Chino Hills and Brett Thompson, Combs and Steadman for Logan.
“I played my heart out,” Brett Thompson said. “I left it all out on the court. The refs made a couple of bad calls, but I can’t let that get to me. I tried to stay positive on the bench with my energy, keep my guys going, keep my cousin going. It just didn’t work.”
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