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Colonna's late heroics boost The Woodlands over Klein

By: Chad Washington
| Published 12/14/2011

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Garret Colonna scored 32 points, including a clutch 3-pointer with three seconds left that send the game into overtime in a 68-63 win for The Woodlands over Klein on Tuesday night.

Colonna scored 19 points in the fourth quarter and in overtime to help the Highlanders to remain undefeated at home and maintain its No. 10 state ranking heading into District 14-5A play.

“(Klein) had their breaks and we had our breaks. But to have the wherewithal to fight through it and find a way to win it, you got to give credit to our guys,” head coach Dale Reed said.

The Highlanders trailed the Bearkats 41-37 entering the fourth quarter after Klein went on a 19-6 run in the third quarter and extended the lead to 50-44 with 2:12 left in regulation. The lead grew to 53-47 with under a minute left. After an Austin Shockley layup made it an eight-point lead, Colonna’s three-point play and two free throws from a technical foul cut the lead to 55-52 with 21 seconds left.

The technical foul came from Klein head coach Glenn Arnold, who became angry with officials when the clock didn’t start as fast as he wanted, blaming the clock operator of not starting it fast enough.

After the free throws, the Highlanders got the ball back and after missing one from the corner, Colonna rolled around and hit a 30-foot shot falling away for the equalizer to send the game into the extra session.

“It was a broken play, we were trying to get any one a shot,” Reed said. “Garret came off and he believes in himself and got a good look, even though he was in traffic. I was standing right behind him, and he got a good look. You could tell it was good from the get-go.”

Colonnna kept it going in the overtime, hitting another 3-pointer for the first score of the period and then went 4-of-4 from the free-throw line. Guard Nolan Cass hit another 3-pointer to put the game away.

Cass ended up with 19 points in the game after he sparked the Highlanders in the first half with 4-of-6 shooting and 4-of-5 from 3-point land.

“We’re really good when both (Colonna and Cass) are making it and we’re good when one of them are making it,” Reed said.

The Woodlands (12-1) trailed 15-8 after the first quarter, but a 19-0 run sparked by Cass helped the Highlanders to take a 31-22 halftime lead. The Bearkats rallied in the third quarter sparked by strong shooting by guard Rex Baxter and center Andrew Kelley, who combined for 12 of Klein’s 19 points in the third quarter to take control of the game.

Kelley had a game-high 20 points for Klein (10-2), with Baxter adding 12. Guard Derek Johnson was a perfect 6-of-6 from the free-throw line and scored 15 points, all in the second half and overtime.

The Woodlands begin district play on Friday when the Highlanders host Atascocita at 7 p.m.

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