Stamford High had four shots at a potential game-winning basket in the final seconds of Tuesday's Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference game against Staples. Most of them were quality looks from close range, and the ball did everything but drop through the net for the Black Knights.
The Wreckers escaped with a 51-50 victory, holding on in a tight game that saw four lead changes in the final period of a hard-fought, scrappy contest between two teams that appear to be locks to make the league playoffs.
Staples (12-4 overall, 11-3 FCIAC) controlled the first half as Stamford committed 11 turnovers. The Wreckers led 24-19 at halftime.
The Black Knights responded behind Danny Turkvan (game-high 17 points) in the third quarter. Turkvan dropped three 3-pointers and Stamford built a 38-34 lead. Staples came to back to within 38-36 at the end of the quarter. The fourth quarter was tight throughout, with Staples' taking the lead for good on Luke Yeager's 3-pointer with 4:05 remaining at 47-45.
After Staples missed the front end of a one-and-one with 29.8 seconds left, Stamford maintained possession for the rest of the game. The Black Knights called a timeout with 11.1 seconds left and inbounded along the baseline. After a shot off the inbounds play, the Black Knights got three offensive rebounds but couldn't get the ball to go down.
Stamford has a difficult road in its final five regular season games. The Black Knights play at Ridgefield Friday before meeting city rival Westhill at home on Monday night. Stamford also has games remaining against Trinity Catholic, Bridgeport Central and St. Joseph.
How far do you think Stamford will go in the FCIAC playoffs? Start the discussion below!
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