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--> --> Feb. 2 Everything but the victory By Joe Zavala Ashland Daily Tidings From thrilling to bizarre to just plain surreal and back again, this game was everything an Ashland boys basketball fan could have hoped for. Except a win. The Grizzlies blew an eight-point lead to Crater in the final 33 seconds of regulation Friday and ended up losing 60-55 in double overtime before what was easily the largest, loudest and most emphatic Mountain Avenue gym crowd of the season. In a game with more plot twists than a Sunday night movie, Chris Pettegrew scored the tying basket off a steal with five seconds left in regulation then peeled off five of Crater's seven points in the second overtime, leading the Comets to a stunning come-from-behind Southern Oregon Conference victory. "We made some stupid plays and turnovers that really hurt us and we just didn't finish the game off," said Ashland junior guard Nick Palmesano, who was second on the team with 13 points. "It should have been ours but we didn't finish the game off." Crater's first bucket of overtime provided the Comets' first lead since early in the opening quarter and they never trailed again. The Grizzlies led 14-13 after one, 25-23 at the break and 37-30 heading into the fourth quarter. Ashland's biggest lead was the eight-point cushion it surrendered in the final minute. "We're kind of disappointed," Grizz junior forward Clinton Bryan said, "because we had it all there but we gave up six points in three seconds, which is kind of a fluke but stuff happens like that." Added Grizz senior guard Titus Weston: "It still hurts because we had it right there in our grasp, but it feels good to have the whole team out there battling the whole time like that, knowing we didn't give up at all the whole game." The Grizzlies (5-12, 1-8 SOC) led 49-41 and were well in control after junior guard Christopher Presicci followed his own missed free throw with 41 seconds left. Moments later, however, Crater's Derek Petersen, who led all scorers with 18 points, nailed a 3-pointer to cut the lead to five. The Comets (6-3 SOC) then stole the ensuing inbounds pass and officially made it interesting when Pettegrew (13 points) was fouled on a rebound put-back with 25.9 seconds left. The senior wing hit the free throw to make the score 49-47, then things got really crazy. Ashland tried to run out the clock on its next possession and was doing so successfully until Crater's Trevor Ryan put a stop to it with a hard foul on Bryan. The referees immediately signaled a flagrant foul, giving Ashland two free throws and the ball. Bryan calmly swished the first freebie but before he could attempt the second, the officials ruled that an Ashland player had not yet taken the floor after being substituted in and therefore Bryan's first free throw had to be re-shot. The apparent do-over ended up costing the Grizzlies big time when Bryan went on to clank both free throws, giving the Comets new life. Pettegrew completed the comeback when he stepped in front of Palmesano's pass to Weston 25 feet from the basket with 10 seconds left, then soared in for the uncontested, game-tying layup. "I just came up and stepped in, tried to get a charge or something and he threw it right to me," Pettegrew said. "This is great. I mean, we came out flat, I think we kind of overlooked them, which is a very bad idea. They're a very athletic team, they can get the job done, and we just had to get our composure and show that we are the No. 4 team (in the SOC) and we need to prove it." After a timeout, Ashland's fullcourt inbounds pass was stolen by Andrew Norum in front of the Ashland bench. Crater then threw the ball away as the final seconds ticked away. Presicci, who tied Bryan with a team-high 14 points (12 in the fourth quarter and overtime), sank a baseline fall-away over Pettegrew with 22 seconds left in the first overtime to tie the game at 53. Crater's attempt to reclaim the lead went awry when Petersen tried to save the ball from going out of bounds but instead threw it into a crowd of Grizzlies. Weston ended up with the ball, dribbled past a scrambling Crater defense then back-rimmed a free-throw line runner just before the horn. The second overtime was all Crater. The two teams traded baskets, then the Comets scored five straight, the final two coming with 14.2 seconds left on a pair of free throws by Rob Davis. Palmesano drilled three treys for the game, but his 3-point attempt that would have tied the game with 20 seconds left fell well short. Petersen saved the rebound falling out of bounds to Davis, who then clinched the win at the charity stripe. The crowd noise was deafening throughout most of the second half and helped the home team grab the early momentum. Every Grizz bucket seemed to be met with a thunderous ovation, every miss with a collective "ohhhhh," and every call against the Grizzlies with chorus of boos. "The crowd was great," Bryan said. "One of our coaches said he hasn't seen a crowd like this since the middle '80s. It's good to get the old gym rocking again." "We kind of knew they were coming," Weston added. "We had talked to a lot of our friends and they said they were going to be there, so we knew they were going to be there but I didn't know it was going to be anything like it was and I thought it was great. I've never seen that gym or felt that gym so loud before, it was just a tremendous feeling being on a court like that. "Our gym today was comparable to Roseburg, which I never thought it would be," he said. Ashland coach John Skinner said the Grizzlies matched that enthusiasm with one of their most energetic performances of the season. "It's the hardest we've played since the early part of the year," he said. "Physically we played very well, mentally we had too many relapses and it just killed us." Ashland Girls Basketball At Central Point, Crater's Amy Denson hit 12 of 15 shots en route to a game-high 27 points and also pulled down 11 rebounds Friday, leading the Crater Comets to their 20th win of the season, 75-53 over Ashland. Marla Morin scored 19 points for the Grizzlies, who fell to 5-6 in the Southern Oregon Conference, 9-12 overall, tied with Grants Pass for the fourth and final SOC playoff spot. Both the Grizzlies and Lady Cavers have three league games remaining. Crater (20-1, 11-0) also got 19 points and 14 assists from Sarah Pool. The Grizzlies take on Eagle Point (5-15, 2-9) Tuesday at home. That same night, Grants Pass will host the South Medford girls (12-8, 8-3). 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