Marist stuns No. 3 Curie

By Tim O'Brien
YourSeason.com
Marists Lexus Williams smiled and showed no signs of stopping.On this night, the junior guard had good reason.Williams three-pointer with two seconds left from the wing in Fridays 4A Marist Regional Final lifted the host RedHawks to the most improbable of comebacks in a 63-62 thriller over Curie.We just wanted to stay aggressive coming out of the half, Williams said. It worked out for us offensively and defensively. (Curie) double-teamed L.J. (McIntosh) who found Nic (Weishar), and he found me.Tyler Oden (20 points), McIntosh (15), Weishar (11) and Williams (10) paced Marist (25-5) who won its first regional title since 2007. The win was the teams ninth in a row. The RedHawks will play Bogan Wednesday at the Argo sectional.Having led 50-45 early in the fourth, Marist saw a furious Curie comeback turn the tide. The Condors went up five points at 62-57 with 50 seconds remaining when Malcom Hill-Bey split two free throws.McIntosh drilled a three-pointer from the wing to cut the deficit to two, and after Hill-Bey missed the front end of a one-and-one, the RedHawks had their chance.With the clock winding down, Weishar drove from the top of the key after receiving a pass from McIntosh. Weishar found Williams on the wing, the junior guard hitting a contested three that proved to be the game winner.Curies Devin Foster (17 points) missed a running 35-foot three-pointer at the buzzer after a timeout.For Marist, Oden drilled five three-pointers, including three in the second quarter as the RedHawks came back from an early deficit.We put in the hard work each day in practice, Oden said. When were down, we cant get down. We have to come together as a team. For me, Ill do whatever it takes to help the team.Cliff Alexander (17 points, 13 rebounds) and Hill-Bey (18 points, six assists) contributed for Curie (25-3). The loss was the first for the Condors against a team other than Simeon this season.Marist came up and hit shots, Curie coach Michael Oliver said. If we hit free throws, we probably win, but that wasnt the whole game. We ran into a buzzsaw.