SACRAMENTO — As the son of an NBA Hall of Famer, Shareef O’Neal has heard it all from opposing fans.
The UCLA commit loves it, and in Friday’s CIF Division II Championship, he was able to turn the chants from the Alameda fans from saying he was inferior to his father to begging for him to shoot free throws like his dad. In all, O’Neal finished with 29 points and 17 rebounds as Crossroads pulled out a 59-53 win.
Even with O’Neal’s prowess and the Roadrunners’ overall length and athleticism, Alameda was right there the entire way, and the Hornets could have won their first state title in school history if not for an ugly 13-for-28 performance at the free throw line and an 0-for-8 showing on 3-pointers in the second half.
“The difference in these close games is who makes free throws and who doesn’t,” said Alameda head coach Cameron Quick. “We played well in spurts, but not long enough.”
When the ball simply wouldn’t go in the hoop for Alameda (28-6), Crossroads took advantage.
Tamir Saban’s only points of the game, a huge three to end the third quarter, stretched the Roadrunner lead to 44-40, and after a Kingsley Obiorah putback cut the deficit to one, O’Neal scored eight straight to give his team a nice cushion.
That extra padding ended up huge, as the Hornets got the lead down to three in the final moments before the Roadrunners did what Alameda couldn’t, sealing the game at the line.
As dejected as the Hornets were following a game that they felt slipped out of their hands, their accomplishments over the course of the year weren’t to be overlooked.
A team that had never won a state tournament game in program history was in the hunt for a championship until the final moments and if just a couple things had fallen into place, that trophy could have been heading to the island.
Instead, it’s heading to Santa Monica, where it will be placed alongside two other Crossroads state championship awards. While O’Neal was quite clearly the star, he wasn’t the only one to have a major impact. D.J. Houston scored 15 points, and O’Neal was quick to deflect praise to his teammates.
“I feel like I could have done some stuff better, but the team had a really good game,” he said.
As much modesty as O’Neal mixed in to his postgame quotes, it was still clear that he was the star. He went 13-for-17 at the free throw line, and he didn’t miss one after the opening possession of the second half, a performance that turned chants of “daddy’s better” into “please shoot like your dad.”
“My favorite part of high school basketball is the crowds talking to me,” said O’Neal.
The cheers from the Alameda supporters rang out long after the game, serenading the disappointed squad with the cheers of a community that was fully appreciative of a team that reached new heights following decades of being a non-factor in the East Bay basketball scene.
“These guys set history this year,” said Quick. “I don’t think they have that understanding right now because of the hurt they feel, but I’m extremely proud.”
Crossroads (25-9) was ready to face a historic team. the early butterflies and jitters that came as the Hornets raced out to a 16-6 lead before an O’Neal dunk sparked the Roadrunners.
“We stayed calm,” said Houston. “When it’s tough, we all gather and know what we have to do.”
A huge part of that was locking down Ryan Cibull, who hit a trio of threes in the first half but was typically double-teamed by the Roadrunner zone in the final 16 minutes. Benno Zecic led Alameda with 16 points, while Obiorah finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
“Kingsley was exceptional on the boards,” said Quick.
From the get-go, Alameda was ready for what was coming, handling the athleticism and nearly matching Crossroads pound-for-pound in rebounds.
Each team finished with 13 offensive rebounds, and the overall 41-37 advantage that the Roadrunners held on the glass was a result of so many alameda misses. Crossroads also had fewer opportunities to score, losing the turnover battle 17-12.
Ultimately, free throws made the difference, and it was O’Neal and his teammates who celebrated on the court rather than the white-clad Hornets.
