Gainesville Defeats P.K. Yonge In Overtime

In an intense boys basketball game, P.K. Yonge and Gainesville were unable to separate themselves in regulation, needing an extra period Tuesday for Gainesville to come out on top, 61-51.

Offenses Struggle Early

Neither team could manage much in the first quarter, combining for only 18 points. The Blue Wave (1-1) scored the first six points of the contest, J. Washington scoring four of them. From there, each team traded two 3-pointers to finish the quarter with a 12-6 Blue Wave lead.

The second quarter was also low scoring. J. Griffin hit a pair of 3s to put P.K. Yonge up 18-10, and the Blue Wave dominated the boards to keep their advantage for the rest of the quarter, which ended 25-16. Griffin was PKY’s leading scorer in the half with 11 points, while Anthony Leivonen and Willie Brooks each put up five for Gainesville (2-0).

Hurricanes Roar Back

Whatever speech Gainesville coach Mike Barnes gave his players at halftime, it worked. The Hurricanes came out hot, going on a 15-3 run over the next five minutes to take a 31-28 lead, their first of the night. Leivonen scored nine of their points and the defensive press was stifling, forcing many Blue Wave turnovers leading to easy fast break layups.

In the final minutes of Q3 the Blue Wave finally woke up, going on a 7-0 run to retake the lead, and the quarter ended with a 35-33 P.K. Yonge lead.

However, the Hurricanes gained confidence after outscoring PKY 17-10 in the quarter.

Back-and-Forth

P.K. Yonge increased their lead back to six early, with two jumpers from Griffin and Washington. However, it didn’t take long for Gainesville to tie it back up at 39 and eventually take back the lead on a pair of Cornelius White free throws.

L. Hill brought the lead back into Blue Wave hands with a big 3, but Leivonen answered with a triple of his own to tie it back up at 46.

Washington could only hit one of two from the stripe, but it still gave his team the one-point advantage with less than a minute to play.

Gainesville failed to convert its next opportunity, and it looked like P.K. Yonge was going to win if it could widen the lead on the ensuing possession. Instead, an errant pass from Washington was stolen by Brooks and taken the other way. Now, it was the Hurricanes with the advantage.

The Hurricanes convert on a late Blue Wave turnover to take a 48-47 lead with 20 seconds remaining. pic.twitter.com/jXY5fvm5eT

— Kevin Perez (@kevinp305) November 29, 2023

Regulation came down to a pair of free throws from J. Muller. With less than five seconds on the clock and a one-point deficit, there was immense pressure and he missed the first. Now, winning was off the table, but he had to hit the second to take the game to overtime. He did just that, tying everything up at 48.

Overtime

Both teams were fired up for the start of overtime, and Gainesville struck first with a Brooks layup. Muller, fresh off of missing a chance to win in regulation, hit a big 3 to retake the lead at 51-50. However, that would end up being P.K. Yonge’s only points in OT. The Hurricanes dominated the rest of the period, scoring 11 unanswered to win the game by 10.

Up Next

Gainesville hosts Williston (3-0) at 7:30 p.m. Friday, while P.K. Yonge travels to Middleburg (3-0) for a 7:30 p.m. game.