Techmen reach Class 5A final, but lose in double overtime
Despite a dominating performance from senior Andrew Andrews, the Benson Techmen had to settle for second place at the OSAA/U.S. Bank/Les Schwab Tires Class 5A boys basketball state tournament Saturday night at the Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene.
Andrews scored 41 points and grabbed five rebounds, but Benson lost 79-73 to Corvallis in double overtime in the championship game. Benson had the final shot in both regulation and the first overtime, and led 66-64 in the second overtime when the Spartans went on a 10-0 run to take control of the game.
Andrews played all 48 minutes of the final and was a unanimous selection to the all-tournament team. Junior Bryce White also earned a spot on the all-tournament first team.
Benson’s playoff run was its first that reached a state final since 2001. The final was the fifth straight year a team from the Portland Interscholastic League has reached the 5A final following three straight titles by Jefferson and a runner-up finish by Roosevelt in 2007.
Andrews, who is headed for the University of Washington, led the tournament in scoring at 27.3 points per game. Earlier Saturday, Washington won the Pac-10 Conference title with an overtime win against Arizona.
In other tournaments, Roosevelt played to within five seconds of the Class 4A boys state final at Gill Coliseum in Corvallis and placed fifth.
Lincoln finished fourth in the Class 6A boys tournament at the Rose Garden.
Jesuit won both the boys and girls titles in the Class 6A tournament, becoming the largest school to win both titles in the same year. Jefferson won both titles in the Class 5A tournament last year.
