The Pace Knights defeated the St. Francis Knights 37-36 in the Region 5-A boys’ championship on Saturday night. Alex Davis scored 11 points and pulled down 10 rebounds, while teammate Josh Swan spent much of the night on the bench due to foul trouble.
Swan had six early points to help Pace jump out to a 9-0 start. His third basket was a soaring dunk on an alley-oop pass from Davis, and as the Pace student section roared, it felt like the game might get out of hand. St. Francis trailed 13-4 at the quarter, and the deficit grew to 20-8 in the second before Swan picked up his third foul and headed to the bench with 4:17 remaining in the half.
St. Francis wasted no time taking advantage of his absence. Isaiah Williams led his team on a 17-2 run, hitting three treys in the quarter, the last one coming at the buzzer to give St. Francis a 25-22 lead as the teams went to the locker room.
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Swan returned to the floor in the second half, but picked up his fourth foul at the 4:58 mark. With Swan out, Pace focused their defensive effort and it paid off. Although the Knights were just one-for-six from the floor for the third quarter, they held St. Francis to only one field goal as well. St. Francis maintained a 28-26 advantage as the game entered the fourth quarter.
Davis stepped up on offense over the final eight minutes. His driving layup at the 3:29 mark tied the game at 31-31, and a free throw just seconds later gave Pace its first lead since the second quarter. With Pace holding a one-point advantage and time winding down, coach Demetrius Smith finally sent his star player back on the floor. “We held Josh out as long as we could to make sure he’d be on the floor when the game was on the line,” said Smith.
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A key play came moments later as Pace’s backup point guard Allen Swan was fouled on a three-point attempt. Pace had struggled from the line all night, but Swan proceeded to make all three shots to increase the Knights’ lead to 36-31.
St. Francis responded with two quick field goals to cut the lead back to one, then Justis Morgan hit a free throw to tie the game up at 36-36. Josh Swan’s free-throw with 0:26 left proved to be the deciding point. St. Francis had one last chance but Williams' three-point attempt came up just short.
Williams had 14 points to lead all scorers. Swan finished with 10 points in limited playing time. The 37-36 final score marked the third time in as many games that Pace won by a single point. They defeated Pinecrest Academy 54-53 in the opening round of the tournament, and survived Providence Christian 44-43 in the semifinals. In all three contests Pace managed to build a double-digit lead then had to hold on at the end.
Prior to Saturday night’s game Josh Swan was named Region 5-A player of the year. He was the only Pace player to make the All-Region team. “It’s nice,” said Swan, “but it’s even better to get the win tonight. St. Francis was tough. It’s a good win.” St. Francis’s Jalen Simmons and Cole Arrington were also named All-Region.
The Pace girls’ team had three players honored. Morgan Batey was recognized as player of the year, while teammates Kaitlyn Dinkins and Haley Zwecker were named to the All-Region team. St. Francis forward Keyona Hayes was also honored.
The Lady Knights won their consolation game earlier on Saturday, a 50-45 overtime thriller vs. Holy Innocents. The team will advance to the Class A state playoffs if they can win a play-in game next Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. The game is scheduled to be played at the Inman Center. The opponent is not yet determined. The Pace boys have secured a spot in the state playoffs and will host a first-round game next Saturday, Feb. 26.
