2013-14: Foothills Coach Not Quite Boeheim

There are 20.8 seconds remaining in the game.  Your team trails, 57-54, after battling back from down 14.

A blocking foul is whistled on one of your players.

The frustration finally got to Foothills Christian coach Brad Leaf.

Leaf channeled his inner Jim Boeheim and was slapped with a technical.

The Knights mentor’s outburst at the officials differed from that of the Syracuse coach, who was famously double T’d and ejected late in a loss to Duke last week.

Leaf, unlike Boeheim, was not wearing a coat when Leaf came onto the court.

Sweetwater then converted  three free throws and ran out a 61-54, Division III semifinals victory over the Knights, who, adding to Leaf’s game-long unhappiness, blew several opportunities to oust the undefeated, 28-0 Red Devils.

A vocal crowd of about 2,000 nearly filled the hosts’ gym and they saw coach Jesse Aguirre’s swifties race to leads of 7-0 and 23-9.

T.J. Leaf, the coach’ 6-foot, 8-inch sophomore son,  had a good line, 22 points, 12 rebounds, four steals, and four assists.

But Leaf missed 6 of his first 7 free throws and could not get several point-blank shots to go down as the very short Red Devils, a pack of swarming bees, harassed their taller opponents.

Leaf fouled out with 3:03 left in the game with the Knights lagging, 55-47.  Foothills manned up and closed to 57-54 but could get no closer.

Sweetwater’s Spencer Mattox scored 29 points and rebounded, dished, and stole in a pell-mell performance.  Mattox also mockingly preened for the Foothills crowd after he  drained an NBA-distance prayer  at the third quarter buzzer, increasing the Sweeties’ lead to 48-38.

Foothills surprisingly, and to Leaf’s dismay, was assigned a fourth seed in D-III, guaranteeing that it would have to meet the No. 1 Red Devils before the championship  game, which now matches Kearny and Sweetwater Friday at the Jenny Craig Pavilion.

Leaf’s week thus began and ended on  sour notes.