4A girls basketball: Chadwick's clutch shot helps T-birds soar past Orem

TAYLORSVILLE — Cherissa Chadwick wasn't supposed to take the final shot of Timpview's quarterfinal game against region rival Orem.

But the senior found the ball in her hands with just seconds on the clock and she put one up anyway. It turned out to be the senior's first game-winner.

"It felt good," said Chadwick, who scored just five points in fifth-ranked Timpview's 48-46 win over Orem in the 4A state tournament at Salt Lake Community College on Thursday afternoon. "They collapsed on (Lindie Haddock) and I was able to bring it home for the team. I knew as soon as it left my hands."

Those last two seconds were the only time the T-birds led their region rivals in Thursday's game.

"We knew we were in this game, but it's hard to beat a team three times," said Timpview head coach Casey Cooke. "When you play teams three times, you know everything about every single person, and they were ready for us."

Chadwick was able to steal the ball with 13 seconds left in the game, and Cooke called time out.

"We drew up a play, obviously, and we told them they had to attack," she said. "My girls kept their composure so well the last minute or so. We just said, 'Hey this is our game right now.' The group of kids we had on the floor, they believed it; we believed it was our game. They just came out and played so tough.

"We normally don't press," said Cooke. "Our pressure defense was awesome in that press. We had to stay in it to get back in the ball game. … I'm just kind of on cloud nine."

The T-birds went to the press despite having two key players — Lyndie Haddock and Lauryn Dela Cruz — each saddled with four fouls.

"We needed them," said Cooke. "There was no way we could sit them on the bench. We just told them to be smart, and they listened to us."

While Orem wanted to slow the tempo and burn clock, the T-birds wanted to "run and gun," said Chadwick. It was the T-birds who won the battle, and it helped them win the game.

Haddock and her teammates said that despite trailing the entire game, they never felt the outcome was in doubt.

"Every single player was saying, 'We're going to win this game,' " said the sophomore, who finished with a game-high 21 points, nine rebounds, two assists and three steals. "We came out there and showed that we were a great team. It was incredible. Our composure was amazing, and I can't wait for tomorrow."

That would be today, when the T-birds play third-ranked Sky View in one of Friday's semifinals.

Both Cooke and her players praised Orem for a great game-plan and effort.

"(Tatiana) Monsen is hard to defend," said Cooke. "She's going to score and she's going to create things for her team. … That's a good team right there."

Orem head coach David Gilchrist said his team was disappointed

"They really did a good job putting pressure, forcing us to kind of rush and hurry," he said. "We made some mistakes down the stretch, which is tough."

He was pleased with how his team executed their game plan. He praised Timpview for coming back and hitting a big shot to win the game.

"(Chadwick) did a great job finishing that shot," he said. "A lot of people can't feel their knees when they get in that situation. She was cool as a cucumber. Compliments to them for executing when they had to."

email: adonaldson@desnews.com