Gomez’ buzzer-beater lifts Memorial past Alvirne, 66-65

HUDSON, NH — Sophomore Joel Gomez’ putback, as time expired, gave Memorial a stunning 66-65 win over Alvirne, in the opening round of the Division I State Tournament, Wednesday night.

With the win, No. 10 Memorial (11-8), advances to the quarterfinals, Saturday, 7 p.m. at No. 2 Portsmouth.

”I’m elated. I’m so happy for these boys. They’ve come a long way in the last two or three years,” said Memorial Coach Danny Bryson. “This is huge for the program. It’s been a while since we’ve been here and I want to keep dancing.”

It was gut-check win for Memorial, who played final five minutes without senior guard Christian Bilolo and junior forward Jake Bornelas, both of whom fouled out.

Senior guard Bory Bory had 21 points and senior guard Devin Lavalley added 20 to lead Memorial. Lavalley hit five 3-pointers, including one from the corner to give the Crusaders a 63-62 lead with just under a minute to play.

Alvirne guard Sean Chipfunde (16 points, four 3s) missed from beyond the arc with Gomez securing the rebound, forcing the Broncos to start to foul.

Lavallee made 1 of 2 with 17.9 seconds remaining to give Memorial a two-point lead.

This time, No. 7 Alvirne had the answer. Junior forward Garrett Hall (16 points, 11 rebounds) calmly knocked down a 3-pointer from the wing, putting the Broncos up, 65-64, with 7.9 seconds left.

After a Memorial timeout, the Crusaders put the ball in play from under their own basket. Gomez got the ball inbounds to Jack Brooks, who quickly got it into the hands of Lavallee.   The senior quickly pushed the ball up the floor, cut between two defenders and put up a runner in the lane that left his hand with 1.9 seconds left.

The shot rimmed out and bounced to the left. Gomez went high over teammate Ajow Luwal and, in one motion, grabbed the rebound and flipped it back toward the hoop with his left hand. The buzzer sounded and the ball dropped through the net, setting off a raucous celebration, as Gomez (12 points, 10 rebounds) was mobbed by his teammates and Crusader fans stormed the court.

“That’s court presence (from Gomez). They’re playing for the season,” said Bryson. “The shot goes up, the play is to crash the boards. Joel is one of our better rebounders and he was in the right place at the right time.”

The game was tight throughout, with neither team able to go on the type of run needed to get separation. Memorial lead 20-19 after the first quarter and 34-31 at intermission.

The third quarter could best be described as a track meet, with the teams playing at breakneck speed and combing for 43 points.

An old-fashioned three-point play by Bory and a 3-pointer from the corner by Lavallee gave Memorial its biggest lead of the game at 44-36.

Alvirne (13-6) clawed it’s way back. After a putback by Luwal put Memorial up 46-39, the Broncos went on a 9-3 run, capped by a 3-pointer from Hall, to pull to within a point, 49-48.

A hook shot in the lane by Ornelas (7 points) gave Memorial a 56-52 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

But after scoring 22 points in the third quarter, Memorial’s offense suddenly got stagnant and the Crusaders went scoreless for the first five minutes, allowing Alvirne to take a 58-56 lead.

A jumper from Lavallee ended the drought, tying the game with 3:00 remaining.

Chipfunde scored on a strong drive to the hoop, putting Alvirne up, 62-60, with the 1:38 left, setting the stage for the frantic finish.