Lyda lifts West Henderson over rival North Henderson in final seconds; West girls win
In Monday's big county and rivalry boys basketball showdown at West Henderson, it was another classic see-saw affair, as North Henderson held a three-point lead at 53-50 with 28 seconds to go.
West sophomore guard Jackson Lyda was fouled and hit his first free throw, but missed the second. He ended up getting his own rebound, as the Falcons set up set up a final play. West had no timeouts but showed no signs of worry.
Truitt Manuel drove in the lane and then kicked the ball out to Lyda, who drained a 3-pointer with eight seconds left as the home crowd roared. West's defense held from there to take a big 54-53 Mountain 7 Conference win.
"The last minute of the game was a gut check for us as a program," West coach Brandon Brooks said. "We have lost those close, tough fought games this year, so it was good to see things go our way and have the kids get a big-time in-county conference win."
Lyda led West with 22 points, and Nick Pate finished with 15. Manuel was the next leading scorer with nine points.
North falls to 10-7 and 5-2 and is tied for second with Pisgah in the conference behind league-leading Franklin (14-4, 8-0). West remains in third spot in the standings at 10-8 and 3-4.
In the girls opener, West, powered by the freshmen twins Jania and Jaza Wilson, won 56-34. Jania Wilson had 14 points, and Jaza Wilson had 13. The other leader for West was Araya Padilla with 12.
North's girls fall to 5-11 and 2-4 in the Mountain 7, while West improves to 10-7 and 4-2 and is now third in the conference.
This article originally appeared on Hendersonville Times-News: Lyda lifts West Henderson over rival North Henderson in final seconds; West girls win
