Boys Basketball – Luke Mayell’s Last-Second Three Lifts Holmdel Over St. Rose

Managing Editor Scott Stump contributed to this article

The Holmdel boys basketball team walked into the McCann Activities and Athletics Center at St. Rose High School for a Saturday afternoon game against the Purple Roses, but the Hornets might as well have been standing at a crossroads.

With his team's postseason hopes starting to fall into serious doubt, Hornets senior Luke Mayell recalled a similar situation last year.

Mayell drilled a tie-breaking, game-winning three-pointer with four seconds left and Holmdel (4-5) beat St. Rose, 40-37, on the road to climb a game closer to a .500 winning percentage.

"This win was really important because we were 3-5 coming into this game, and last year we were 3-5 and came into Manalapan and got a big win," Mayell said. "So we said we had to do what we did last year - go on the road, get a big win, and get things back on track."

Mayell finished with a game-high 14 points and the three biggest came on a shot from well beyond the arc on the left wing. Junior John Miller - who chipped in eight points for the Hornets - drove along the left baseline and kicked the ball back out to Mayell, who knocked down the game-winner with 4 seconds remaining on the clock. A halfcourt shot by St. Rose came up empty as time expired.

"In practice, we always work on the crackback play, so (Miller) drives baseline, and I'm behind him," Mayell said. "He found me, and I just knocked down the shot. As soon as I stepped in and shot it, I knew it was going in."

Senior guard Nolan Slattery led St. Rose with 12 points, including a game-tying three with 36 seconds that evened the score at 37 apiece.