Easton comes back to upset Northshore in slippery OT battle

Northshore appeared to be pulling away early in the fourth quarter Thursday when a humid Warren Easton gym and slippery court turned the teams' regular-season finale on its head.   The quarter dragged for more than 45 minutes of dozens of stoppages to wipe the slick floor following players' constant — and occasionally scary — skids, slides and tumbles and one extended break as a fan was tended to before ultimately being wheelchaired out for further medical attention.   But, as the clock finally wound down, senior Kentrell Fulton drained a game-tying 3-pointer with 1.8 seconds remaining to complete a 12-point comeback and force an overtime period where he further sparked the Eagles (18-10) to a 58-53 victory over the Panthers (19-10).   "We were down the whole game," he said. "I told my team, 'Don't put your head down. I've been in a lot of games like this.' So I knew it was going to be a tough fight to come back, but I kept my confidence up, kept shooting the ball, and it worked out for us."   The unusual circumstances dampened a contest that otherwise should have been most heavily remembered for a scoring duel between two standout New Orleans area guards with Easton needing every one of Fulton's 32 points, including 15 in the fourth, to overcome [player_tooltip player_id='1145438' first='Kohen' last='Rowbatham']'s 33 for the Panthers.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-embed-handler wp-block-embed-embed-handler wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://www.youtube.com/embed/bN3035COq68 </div></figure>   Kentrell Fulton (2023) | 5-11 G | Warren Easton   Regardless of the setting details, Fulton found a way to lead his Eagles to victory on his senior night with one pivotal basket after another. The smooth-handling guard was off the mark from 3-point range for much of the night, connecting on just one of his first five attempts, but continued to find his way to the mid-range and the lane to pace his team's scoring with 12 points through the first three quarters, then a 15-point explosion in the fourth as he hit is final two 3-pointers and another five in overtime to push his total to 32. He also grabbed four rebounds and three steals.   Greg Donaldson (2024) | 5-10 G | Warren Easton   Fulton's backcourt-mate added nine points, four rebounds, two assists and a steal. The slightly shorter, thicker guard also plays quarterback for the Eagles' football team and showed his physicality with more of his scoring coming inside the arc.   Kentrell Freeman (2024) | F/C | Warren Easton   The Eagles' other Kentrell, the junior big man, led all players with 11 rebounds and provided an important inside presence against a strong, attacking opponent.   [player_tooltip player_id='1347459' first='Gerald' last='Hall'] | 6-0 G/F | Warren Easton   The Eagles received a nice scoring boost off the bench from Hall with 10 points on 2-for-2 shooting from beyond the arc, including a fourth-quarter 3-pointer that helped start the comeback run.   [player_tooltip player_id='1145438' first='Kohen' last='Rowbatham'] (2024) | 6-1 G | Northshore   Like his Easton counterpoint, the Panthers' leading scorer's 3-point mark was less consistent than he would've liked — 2-for-8 on the night — but couldn't deter him from battling his way to a game-high 33 points, including 13 in the fourth to help stretch the lead and nearly close out a tough road victory. The multi-sport standout is explosive and strong with his ball-handling and attacking the paint and in constant communication with his coaches and teammates as a leader on both ends of the court, including two steals and a blocked shot.   [player_tooltip player_id='1275293' first='Tyrell' last='Yates'] (2023) | 6-3 G | Northshore and Gabriel James (2023) | 6-2 G | Northshore   The tall, long senior guard duo provided great versatility alongside Rowbatham and strong, thicker-built wing James Bridges. Yates and James finished with four points, four assists each. Yates grabbed six rebounds and three steals and blocked a shot. And James helped lead the Panthers on the boards with nine and blocked a shot as well.   [player_tooltip player_id='2173476' first='Dawson' last='Knox'] (2024) | 6-7 F | Northshore   The Panthers' stretch big scored seven points, including a corner 3-pointer, and grabbed nine rebounds, blocked a shot and added a steal.

Northshore appeared to be pulling away early in the fourth quarter Thursday when a humid Warren Easton gym and slippery court turned the teams' regular-season finale on its head.