Chaminade digs deep under pressure, wins CHSAA state Class A boys basketball championship in double overtime

It’s going to take a lot more than two overtime periods to make Chaminade quit.

With 31.4 seconds left in double overtime, Kam Elliott scooped up a loose ball that rolled right to him, stepped back into the corner and uncorked a three-pointer.

Splash.

It gave the Flyers a four-point lead, putting them in the driver’s seat. Chaminade allowed a quick layup on the other end, but Elliott was fouled and stepped to the free throw line with a chance to put the game away for good with 11.5 seconds left.

He confidently buried both for the final points of Chaminade’s 88-84 win over Bishop Timon-St. Jude (Buffalo) in the CHSAA Class A boys basketball state championship game Saturday at Hofstra.

Chaminade’s first state title since 2003 comes a year after the Flyers fell to Bishop Timon in the state semifinals.

“We put a lot of work in at the end of practice on making free throws in those moments when you’re tired. We have to make 14 in a row,” Elliott said. “So, I felt like I could step up there and knock those down.”

Chaminade trailed by eight points with four minutes left in regulation, but there was no panic on the Flyers’ bench.

They began applying a full-court press, making the Tigers uncomfortable coming down the floor. With 1:25 left, Devin Dillon stole an inbounds pass and was fouled. Despite missing both free throws, he got his own rebound and found Joe Knaus, who was fouled on a three-pointer. Knaus made two free throws to bring the Flyers within two points.

Chaminade got another stop and Ricky Gunther found Kyle Dillon, Devin’s brother, in transition for an easy layup to tie the game at 66.

“That’s how these guys have been all year,” coach Dan Feeney said. “We’ve had a couple of games where we were down nine, but we lose by two and we get a shot off at the end. We knew we could dig it out. We do a lot of situational stuff in practice and they were prepared for that today.”

Chaminade trailed by five in OT, but two threes by Knaus got the Flyers right back in it. Gunther drilled the tying three with 22 seconds left to extend the game.

“Thinking about last year and losing to that team, I just wanted to win it so bad. I was open, so I just let it fly,” Gunther said.

Knaus, whose shots stopped falling in the fourth quarter, opened the second OT period with a three to send the Flyer faithful into a frenzy.

“It gives me all the confidence in the world to know that I could go 0-for-9 and they’re still going to look at me and say, ‘Keep shooting,’” Knaus said.

Knaus led the Flyers with 25 points and made seven threes. Gunther scored 22 points, Elliott had 19 and Kyle Dillon had 12. Jacob Humphrey scored 33 points for Bishop Timon (25-3).

Gunther scored 11 points in the first quarter, including seven consecutive as part of a 14-0 Chaminade run. The Flyers led by two at halftime and had a 46-36 lead midway through the third quarter before Bishop Timon caught fire.

Chaminade finishes the season 20-7, having won its second consecutive NSCHSAA title and 11th overall.

“We put so much work into this every day in practice,” Gunther said. “For it to pay off like this is great and to do it for our school and community is an awesome feeling.”