KIPP NYC suffers a heartbreaking 66-65 loss to Olean in New York State Federation B Semifinal

March 22, 2016


KIPP suffered a heartbreaking 66-65 loss to Olean in the New York State Federation B Semifinal on Saturday. After KIPP led 14-11 at the end of the first quarter, Olean, the top-ranked B team in New York State for the entire season with a record of 27-0 entering the game, took a double digit lead in the second before KIPP cut the deficit to 32-27 at halftime. Olean pulled away again in the third, this time taking a commanding 51-33 lead heading into the fourth. Behind Jason Valera-Munoz, KIPP staged a remarkable rally in the final quarter and nearly stunned Olean and the fans in attendance at the Times Union Center in Albany. KIPP narrowed the margin to 56-47 with 3:24 left to play and Valera-Munoz's 3-pointer at the 1:40 mark made it 61-55. After Elijah Ramadhan of Olean made one of two free throws with 22 seconds left, KIPP took possession trailing 64-60. The sequence that followed was like something out of a movie (see below). After Xavier Nunez's 3-pointer cut Olean's lead to 64-63 with 18 seconds left, Valera-Munoz stole the inbounds pass and, after he missed a quick shot underneath the backboard, Christian Sturdivant followed-up the miss to give KIPP an improbable 65-64 lead with just 12 ticks remaining. Jacob Cavana of Olean dribbled the length of the court and, even though KIPP defended his eventual drive to the hoop, Albert Wilson was whistled for a foul on the rebound with just 0.6 seconds left. Cavana made both free throws and KIPP missed a desparation heave at the buzzer, giving Olean the 66-65 win. After a storybook comeback that had the crowd cheering for KIPP similar to an underdog in an NCAA tournament game, their amazing feat was erased on a foul called with less than one second left. Heartbreaking.

        

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