‘It was better than crazy’: Josiah Legree’s miracle buzzer-beater in overtime lifts Parkville to 67-66 victory over Dulaney

Parkville boys basketball’s Josiah Legree capped an incredible second-half performance Thursday with a miracle 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the host Knights a 67-66 overtime victory over Dulaney (15-5) in the Class 4A North Region I final.

After the game-winning shot, Legree sprinted to the other end of the court while teammates and fans chased the jubilant junior.

“It was better than crazy,” Legree said. “I feel great. We had many players sick and I had to step up and be a leader for my team and be a true point guard.”

The triumph gave the 24-1 Knights their third straight regional crown.

The play began when Legree got the inbounds pass in the backcourt with 14 seconds left, and he casually dribbled 13 times to the right side before glancing down low and pulling the jumper right in front of his team’s bench.

“I was going to give it to Caron [Smith], but I saw the man helping and I took it myself,” he said.

“He just got that off, the buzzer went off when it was in the air,” Dulaney coach Matt Lochte said. “He had three points in the first half and he just took off in the second half.”

Legree scored 24 of his game-high 27 points in the second half and overtime and made five 3-pointers.

“He knew he had to step and since mid-December, he’s been one of the top point guards in the state of Maryland, so it’s no surprise to us as coaches, he can score in bunches,” Parkville coach Josh Czerski said.

Sincere Barfield made four 3-pointers in the first quarter to help the Knights take a 14-10 lead, but he didn’t make another after that.

“Nobody was feeling well, so things were out of hand. Jo stepped up and showed that he can be scorer,” Barfield said. “He can be a point guard, he can be the best on the team and he can lead a team and that’s what he did. We had faith in him, we trusted him and we see the result now. I knew he was going to knock that shot down, I had no doubt about it.”

Dulaney led 26-24 at halftime thanks to 12 first-half points from Eric Zhang and six from Paul Gross.

Threes by Zhang, Peter Hylind and Jamariez Corley-Scott in the third quarter, along with a pair of blocked shots and a bucket from Patrick Wynne, extended Dulaney’s lead to 39-31 with 2:20 left in the third quarter. The Lions took a 43-38 lead into the fourth.

Legree had seven points in the quarter and Favor Okigweh had a dunk and layup and the Lions lead was 43-38 after three quarters.

Dulaney went on a 9-5 run and led 52-43 after a putback by Ezra Tull with five minutes left in the fourth quarter before Parkville answered with 13 straight points. Another dunk by Favor Okigweh started the surge.

“Favor Okigweh, he just played out of this world in the second half,” Czerski said.

Legree scored 11 points during the rally. His 3-pointer with 3:25 left gave the Knights a 53-52 lead and another 3 pushed the advantage to 56-52 with 2:50 remaining.

Zhang’s 3-point play pulled the Lions within one and, after Zhang and Barfield traded free throws, the Knights led 57-56 with 1:08 left.

Okigweh’s offensive rebound and basket bumped the lead to 59-56 before Zhang sent the game into overtime with a 3-pointer with 33 seconds left in regulation.

The game was tied at 59 heading into overtime and An early basket in overtime by Corley-Scott was answered by two free throws from Barfield.

Zhang’s foul line jumper moved the Lions in front in overtime and they led 65-62 with 1:46 left. Barfield canned two free throws to get Parkville within one, but perhaps more importantly, Dulaney’s leading scorer, Zhang (26 points), fouled out on the play with 1:30 left.

Corley-Scott’s free throw gave the Lions a 66-64 advantage with 14 seconds left and set up Legree’s game-winning shot.

“Parkville is a good team, but we came in prepared and had an opportunity to win,” Lochte said. “I wish we could replay the game, but you can’t, hats off to Parkville. That’s a great team, coach does a nice job over here and they are advancing and we are cleaning out our lockers.”

“Greatness again, greatness,” Barfield said. “Back-to-back undefeated regular seasons. We had an unfortunate loss [in the county championship] but we are back where we wanted to be. It’s only up from here.”

It was the second straight close game for the Knights, who defeated Perry Hall, 76-70, in the semifinals.

“They are a great coached team. Coach Lochte does a great job, he’s excellent with film, he really works hard, he had that team rolling and on our heels,” Czerski said. “Luckily for us, we stuck with it and kept doing what we know we are good at, but they are a well-coached team, great program and it’s no surprise it was a close game to me.”

The Knights, whose only loss came to New Town in the county championship game, will play Saturday in the state quarterfinals after the teams are reseeded.

Parkville 67, Dulaney 66

P — Josiah Legree 27, Sincere Barfield 17, Favor Okigweh 8, Dwain Worsley 6, Caron Smith 5, Michael Wiggins 4.

D — Eric Zhang 26, Jamariez Corley-Scott 12, Paul Gross 10, Peter Hylind 7, Patrick Wynne 7, Ezra Tull 4.

Halftime 26-24, Dulaney