Reynolds wraps up Beegraphix comeback
By Jose Negron
jnegron@yourmvi.com
A lot can happen on a basketball court in 37 seconds.
That’s why BeeGraphix head coach Tim Tyree preaches to his players the importance of playing till the clock hits all zeros.
Tyree’s message was well received as Brayden Reynolds finished off a late run with a three-point play in the final seconds to give second-seeded BG a thrilling come-from-behind 70-68 win over No. 3 Howard Hanna Wilson Baum in the semifinals of the Mon Valley Independent Summer Basketball League boys division playoffs Tuesday.
BeeGraphix (9-2), which trailed by as many as 15 in the second half, finished the game on an 11-0 run in the final 37 seconds. Reynolds, a senior from Chartiers Valley, had six points during that spurt, while Laurel Highlands’ Rodney Gallagher III scored five.
“I’ve been saying all summer what a great group of guys we have, but I think they really showed it tonight,” Tyree said. “We had foul trouble and we threw guys in and out, but time and time again they made play after play. We did it on the defensive end, too. That is what I was preaching. I know we have enough guys offensively that we’re going to get buckets, it’s just about getting stops. We took it one possession at a time and we really finished it out.
“Hats off to Coach (Matt) Loftis and the job they did because they really deserved to win the game, but our guys didn’t quit.”
With his team trailing 68-67, Reynolds showed just how valuable he is when the game is on the line.
He picked off an errant pass from Howard Hanna’s Daniel Gordon before driving to the hoop and converting on a reverse layup for the go-ahead bucket with less than a second remaining on the clock. Reynolds, who picked up his first Division I offer from Army last week, was fouled and finished off the three-point play to give BeeGraphix a two-point edge.
Howard Hanna (6-5) had an opportunity to tie it as Gordon sent a long inbound pass to Isayah Mosley inside the paint, but Mosley couldn’t get a shot off, sending BeeGraphix to Thursday’s championship.
“This means so much, especially since we were down by 15 late in the game,” said Reynolds, who finished with 24 points. “It feels good to get the win and now we get to move on to the championship. We get to enjoy this, but it’s almost like we have to forget about it and focus on getting a win (Thursday).”
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