Detroit U-D Jesuit wins boys basketball regional title, 52-51, over Detroit Cass Tech

With Detroit U-D Jesuit trailing by one point in Thursday's regional final game against Detroit Cass Tech with 6.2 seconds left in the game, Cassius Winston sprinted up the court and drove to the basket, drawing a foul with 0.5 seconds to go.

"Six seconds is plenty of time," Winston said. "We worked on it in practice - four seconds to get down the court and make something happen. I knew I could get down there, and I saw bodies down there and tried to go get some contact and get a foul."

Winston stepped to the free-throw line and calmly sank the first to tie the game at 51. After Cass Tech (18-6) called timeout to try to ice the game, U-D had six players on the court. The officials did not notice, and Winston knocked down the second free throw to give U-D (22-2) a 52-51 lead and the first Class A boys basketball regional championship in school history.

"It's just another step," Winston said. "This is the first time in school history. We made school history, and I'm just looking forward to keep it moving."

Winston also helped U-D climb back into the game after falling behind, 50-46, with 2:14 to go in the fourth quarter.

Parris Bennett tipped in a missed shot to make it 50-48, and then Winston finished a fast break with a layup off of a steal to tie the game at 50 with 34.7 seconds left.

Cass Tech responded, as Rob Edwards, who transferred from U-D, drew a foul and went to the free throw line for a chance to give the Technicians the lead.

He made 1-of-2 free throws to set up the final play for Winston.

The game was very close throughout, as neither team could build a lead of more than six points the entire game.

Cass Tech went into the halftime break with a 28-27 lead, but U-D took an early lead in the third quarter and led, 41-36, heading into the final quarter.

Kenny Carpenter gave Cass Tech a 47-46 lead on a 3-pointer with 2:53 to go in the fourth quarter, and then Michael Laster's 3-point play with 2:14 remaining made it 50-46.

U-D's first regional title comes just a year after the Cubs lost a heartbreaker to Detroit Pershing in the regional finals.

"Last year, we lose on a buzzer-beater to Pershing, and our guys really were committed; they remembered that," U-D coach Pat Donnelly said. "They came back and they made the conscious effort to see that they were not letting that happen again.

"It's a great win for U-D."

U-D will advance to the Class A quarterfinals against Romulus on Tuesday at Calihan Hall.

Winston led U-D with 15 points. Noah King added 10 points. Edwards scored 15 points off the bench for Cass Tech and Carpenter scored 14.