Thursday, March 15, 2001
Last-second shot sinks Campbell Co.
Controversial rebound leads South Laurel to win
By Ray Schaefer
Enquirer contributor
LEXINGTON — Campbell County was about a second from winning its first boys state tournament basketball game, in its first trip in 41 years. But the game lasted a second too long.
South Laurel junior Derek Coffey's layup in overtime put the Cardinals in the quarterfinals with a 64-63 victory Wednesday at Rupp Arena.
Coffey grabbed the offensive rebound of teammate Nathan Valentine's miss. But how he ended up underneath the basket was a controversy.
“Nobody boxed me out,” Coffey said. “I slid behind the guy.”
Campbell County senior forward Jordan Futscher was “the guy.” He thought he had position and watched Valentine's shot drift toward his hands.
“Then I was on the floor,” Futscher said. “You don't expect those late calls.”
Campbell County coach Dan Sullivan said he thought the tournament could have made an extra $13 from Futscher, thanks to Coffey sending him off the court.
“Futscher needed a ticket to get into the stands,” Sulli van said. “The call was missed. That happens.”
One of Sullivan's best friends, South Laurel coach and Boone County graduate Steve Wright, simply was grateful.
“The last thing I said to (Coffey) was, make sure you're on the opposite block (from Valentine),” Wright said. “Never did I dream that would happen.”
Those points were the only two Coffey scored in the second half and overtime. He finished with 10 points and five rebounds, and Valentine scored 22.
Coffey's final shot also made up for his wild high pass that went out of bounds in the backcourt with 21 seconds left in regulation.
“That's the first game-winning shot I ever hit,” Coffey said.
It was a fitting end to a game that had nine ties and 23 lead changes.
But it did not negate what Futscher and junior center Kevin Reinhardt did to put the Camels (22-8) in a position to win.
Futscher led the Camels with 22 points. Reinhardt added 17 points and 13 rebounds, and it was his two free throws with 36.6 seconds left in overtime that gave Campbell County a 63-62 lead.
“I'm not happy with anything I did, because we lost,” Reinhardt said.
Campbell County had a chance to end the game after 32 minutes. After Coffey's errant throw, senior Brett Krift's 15-footer with six seconds to go hit the rim before falling away.
The 5-foot-10 Futscher carried the Campbell County offense the first half. His 11 points helped keep the Camels in the game while Reinhardt struggled to five points on 2-of-9 shooting.
“I move well without the ball,” Futscher said. “It's just my style of game.”
The Camels and Cardinals were similar in terms of size and speed, and the final statistics bore that out.
Campbell County was 23-of-48 from the field compared to South Laurel's 24-of-54. The Camels barely won the rebounding battle 33-29, and the Cardinals had 13 turnovers to the Camels' 15.
“I'm real proud of our kids,” Sullivan said. “I think they played hard — like they did all year.”
SOUTH LAUREL (64) — Sizemore 3-7 0-0 7, Dean 3-7 0-0 7, Riley 4-10 13-15 22, Valentine 5-11 0-3 10, Hensley 4-5 0-2 8, Parsons 0-1 0-0 0, Coffey 4-7 2-3 10. Totals: 23-48 15-23 64.
CAMPBELL COUNTY (63) — Miller 0-0 0-0 0, Sigmon 1-5 0-0 2, Clines 5-12 0-0 12, Futscher 9-12 2-2 22, Reinhardt 5-18 5-7 17, Krift 4-6 0-2 10, Cornetet 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 24-54 7-11 63.
South Laurel ....... 16 9 20 11 8-64
Campbell County ....... 13 13 14 16 7-63
3-point goals: SL 3-10 (Sizemore 1-3, Dean 1-1, Riley 1-2, Valentine 0-3, Parsons 0-1); CC 8-16 (Sigmon 0-1, Clines 2-4, Futscher 2-2, Reinhardt 2-5, Krift 2-3, Cornetet 0-1). Rebounds: SL 29 (Valentine 7); CC 33 (Reinhardt 13). Fouled out: SL-Hensley; CC-Sigmon. Assists: SL 4 (Riley 4); CC 11 (Miller 3, Krift 3). Turnovers: SL 13 (Riley 5); CC 15 (Reinhardt 4). Blocked shots: SL 2 (Valentine and Coffey); CC 3 (Reinhardt 3). Steals: SL 4 (Riley 2); CC 3 (Clines 2).Total fouls: SL 15, CC 16. Records: SL 27-6, CC 22-8.
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Last-second shot sinks Campbell Co.
