Modesto Christian survives scare from Beyer; state-record league streak intact

For 20 seconds, the Modesto Christian High School boys basketball team’s state-record league winning streak hung in the balance as Beyer emptied its tank.

Brian Perry spun in the lane and released a shot over 6-foot-9 Gabe Murphy, drawing the front of the rim. Miss.

The ball found Dylan Weltmer, who whipped a pass along the baseline to Deangelo Dancer. His 3-point attempt with under 10 seconds to go was tipped by Tyler Williams. Miss.

Weltmer grabbed the rebound but couldn’t get a shot off. Buzzer.

The visiting Crusaders celebrated a victory they nearly fretted away in the fourth quarter, recording their 163rd straight league win with a thrilling 58-57 triumph Monday night.

Modesto Christian (14-5, 7-0 Modesto Metro Conference) needed every second to hold off the Patriots (13-7, 5-2), who rallied behind their offensive rebounding.

“I wasn’t even thinking about the streak,” Modesto Christian coach Brice Fantazia said. “I was just frustrated with us getting outrebounded. I think a lot of it was our guys are still young. … As the game gets more tense, guys are afraid to go and just be a man and go get the ball. Down the stretch, I think that’s what happened to us until the final possession.”

Murphy had 15 points, 10 rebounds and two blocked shots, and sophomore Tsotne Tsartsidze had 12 points and four rebounds as Modesto Christian survived its biggest scare in league play since …

Well, ever.

“Just disappointed,” Perry said. “We played hard all game, and to let it get away at the end … There’s not much more to say. We gave it all that we had, and it didn’t fall our way.”

The streak began in 1996 with a 12-0 run through the Southern League during former coach Gary Porter’s first season and progressed through the Trans-Valley League.

During the 2011-12 season, Ripon pushed Modesto Christian to the edge in both meetings. The Indians slowed the pace at home in a 38-35 loss, then traded punches with the Crusaders in a 76-73 defeat.

On Monday, Beyer didn’t just push or punch. It swung from its shoetops with everything it had and found itself in position to snap the streak with 48 seconds left.

“This is so important,” Williams said of a streak older than he. “We can’t lose the streak. That’s what MC is known for. We couldn’t let anyone come in and take it from us.

“I was nervous because they got the lead and everything, but we just had to play hard. We went through a couple of mistakes and a couple of turnovers, but we got it back.”

The Patriots erased an eight-point deficit early in the fourth quarter by selling out on the offensive glass. Beyer outrebounded the taller Crusaders 15-2 over the final eight minutes.

Brandon Gray was a revelation in the second half. The Beyer junior forward had seven of his game-high 11 rebounds in the fourth quarter, including four to keep possessions alive.

That energy fueled the Patriots’ fight. With under a minute to go, Ben Polack chased down a long rebound near the free-throw line and passed to Perry, whose shot was blocked by Murphy.

Weltmer collected the rebound and finished to put Beyer ahead 58-57 with 47.9 seconds left.

“We just wanted it,” Perry said.

Fantazia called timeout to set up the next possession. He put the ball in Williams’ hands.

The junior has blossomed into an offensive force for the Crusaders, using his supreme athleticism and improving jump shot to give defenses fits. Williams showcased that inside-outside game Monday, making two 3-pointers.

On what would be the Crusaders’ penultimate possession, Fantazia wanted Williams to drive the lane, creating either a basket or free throws. He got neither.

“We called out a play, and I took it to the rack and I missed,” Williams said. “Right then and there, I said, ‘I got to get this win. I got to get it back, and I got to get a bucket.’ ”

Perry pushed the ball up the floor but dribbled into a trap near midcourt. Darrian Grays jarred the ball loose and flipped it ahead to Williams, who finished with one hand to give Modesto Christian the lead, 58-57.

“Time is winding down and your adrenaline is rushing,” Grays said. “The only thing you can think about is lock up. You don’t want them to score. It’s a big rivalry game; we didn’t want to lose that game. The only thing that was on my mind was to lock up … and don’t let them score.

“You could tell he was kind of in panic mode. So I just stayed with my defensive principles and took it, took the ball.”

Williams finished with 14 points, including 10 in the second quarter as Modesto Christian led 36-33. Grays was held scoreless over the final three quarters and finished with five points, well below his season average.

The Crusaders were out of sorts and out of position without freshman point guard Michael Pearson Jr., who fractured his foot in practice last week and will miss the rest of the season.

Grays moved to point guard and Patterson transfer Kwaheri Rue was inserted into the starting lineup.

“It was frustrating, but I just stuck with it and tried not to show it out there,” said Grays, heckled by the Beyer student section after a rare air ball. “I did everything else I could do – rebound, get my teammates involved, play defense. I’m used to playing the two guard, where I can be free and do more of what I want. It was somewhat of an adjustment.”

The shuffling took its toll. The Crusaders committed 11 turnovers and appeared lost at both ends of the floor in the fourth quarter as Beyer mounted its comeback. At one point, a Modesto Christian assistant screamed, “They want it more.”

“In the second half, guys were just getting adjusted,” Fantazia said. “I really thought our kids started getting frustrated with some of the foul calls. We only shot (three) free throws in the second half. I saw our kids complaining instead of just playing basketball.”

Indeed, it looked as if Beyer would strike a victory for all the Southern, Trans-Valley and Modesto Metro teams that have struggled to compete with Modesto Christian.

Perry was spectacular. A dead-eye 3-point shooter, the senior guard hunted most of his points in the paint. He scored a game-high 25, including 12 off drives.

“I was feeling pretty good,” he said.

Weltmer and Dancer had 10 apiece, while Jaden Cobb scored six of his eight points on 3-pointers in the third quarter.

This story was originally published January 23, 2017 at 10:55 PM with the headline "Modesto Christian survives scare from Beyer; state-record league streak intact."