Union learned a lesson in the most painful of ways Saturday.
For all of three quarters, the Titans touted their zone defense and grounded the shooting of Mount Si, which won its first two games of the season by 41 and 45 points, respectively.
They were on the verge of picking up a win against the Wildcats, the 2020 Class 4A state champions and still one of the top teams in the state. Instead, Union struggled to stay composed when the pressure mounted.
Mount Si pulled off a 54-52 stunner, coming back from a 14-point deficit entering the fourth quarter to take its first lead inside the final 30 seconds.
Miles Heide, a 6-foot-9 forward, scored the go-ahead basket underneath before Blake Forrest stole Union’s ensuing inbounds pass and put in an uncontested layup, giving the Wildcats a 52-49 lead with 22 seconds left.
“We kind of lost our poise a little bit,” Union head coach Blake Conley said. “And again, that’s because of the great pressure that Mount Si was able to exert.”
The sequence was the final blow to Union’s lead, but it represented one of several moments during the final quarter that contributed to the Titans’ unraveling.
Union missed three one-and-one free throws, committed four turnovers in the final quarter and following a foul on Mount Si with 51/2 minutes left, Union was assessed a technical for shoving a Mount Si player.
Between the technical free throws and ensuing Wildcats possession, it was four-point swing that cut Union’s 46-38 lead in half.
“We missed three front ends of one-and-ones. That’s a game changer,” Conley said. “Getting a technical in a two-point game is not something that we want. All those little plays. …”
“But, I also think that was something these kids have not seen before. This group hasn’t been in a pressure situation like that. I just told them that we had that lead against a very, very good basketball team — a team that’s going to be competing for the state championship. So we showed that we are definitely capable of beating a team (like that). If we make a couple shots, don’t do a couple things that we did, but maybe we had to go through that to learn from it.”
Bryson Metz, who led Union with 20 points, was intentionally fouled twice after Mount Si took a three-point lead.
On the second trip to the line with 4.2 seconds left, Metz made the first and intentionally missed the second one. He grabbed his own rebound and took a deep shot in the corner over two Mount Si defenders that fell off the mark.
Josiah Baldassare and Yanni Fassillis each chipped in 11 for the Titans (3-1).
Heide and Quin Patterson scored 15 points apiece to lead Mount Si, while Forrest added 11.
MOUNT SI 54, UNION 52
MOUNT SI (3-0) — Bennett O’Connor 4, Blake Forrest 11, Blake Miller 0, Trevor Hennig 8, Jake Moore 0, Drew Hiddleson 1, Eli Spence 0, Quin Patterson 15, Cam Holliway 0, Miles Heide 15. Totals 20 (6) 8-14 54.
UNION (3-1) — Jamison Limbrick 4, Bryson Metz 20, Evan Eschels 6, Porter Hill 0, Yanni Fassillis 11, Josiah Baldassare 11. Totals 18 (4) 12-17 52.
Mount Si 9 14 9 22—54
Union 19 13 14 6—52
JV — Mount Si 44-34
