Liam Harrington’s free throws lift Herndon over South Lakes
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Version 0 of 1. Liam Harrington does not shy away from the reputation he built last season, and during the final minute of Friday’s rivalry matchup against South Lakes, the Seahawks did all they could to remind the Herndon guard of it. With Herndon nursing a two-point lead, Harrington, who shot just 50 percent from the foul line as a sophomore, was intentionally sent to the foul line by the Seahawks on three consecutive possessions. As Harrington settled in at the charity stripe, he heard a voice in his head, one that resonated above the distracting roars from South Lakes fans. “My coach [Gary Hall] has a saying to ‘make ’em pay,’ ” Harrington said afterward. “We buy into what he tells us, and that was especially true at that point.” The junior calmly sank his final four free throws to seal a hard-fought 86-80 win at home for the Hornets, who were pushed to the limit by the feisty Seahawks. For Herndon to be in such a tense predicament seemed unthinkable following the opening period. Fueled by their home crowd and turnovers created by their swarming defense, the Hornets (4-1) jumped out to a 31-16 lead behind 10 first-quarter points by James Lee. But after Lee and top scorer Michael Griffin both went to the bench in foul trouble, the Seahawks made their move. Big-bodied forwards Emmanuel Aghayere and Andrew Powers crashed the boards to create second-chance opportunities for South Lakes, which used a 20-4 run to take a five-point lead into halftime. “Defensive rebounding was really hurting us, and Coach let us know that by getting on us in the locker room,” said Griffin, who finished with 18 points. “We just had to be more aggressive.” Herndon’s response to Hall’s exhortation took some time thanks to a slew of fouls and missed free throws that turned the back-and-forth affair into a choppy sequence. But with the Seahawks energized and up by six following a three-pointer by Marty Gryski (27 points), the Hornets made their move. Griffin attacked the rim for a three-point play, and two more baskets followed off turnovers forced by Herndon’s 1-2-2 zone press to spark a 14-0 run. Despite shooting 19 of 40 from the foul line, the Seahawks (2-3) hovered within striking distance the rest of the way as Gryski continued to nail big shots off space created by Cameron Savage’s drives. But Herndon’s previously poor foul shooting ultimately gave way to proficiency, with the Hornets draining 11 of their final 14 attempts. Six of those makes came off the fingertips of Harrington, who let out a relieved sigh as he soaked up the win and his 23-point performance. “I knew that’s why they were fouling me, so I had to show them I could make them,” Harrington said. “All of our guys came up with big plays when we needed them.” |