WINCHESTER — It was only fitting for Sean Benton to put the nail in the coffin at the end of Friday’s Region 4D first-round game between the Sherando and James Wood High School boys’ basketball teams.
Having already scored 14 points in the fourth quarter, Benton put the cherry on top of a career performance when he nailed two free throws with seconds remaining to lift Sherando to a 46-41 win over Wood in Donald H. Shirley Gymnasium.
After storming back from an eight-point deficit in the fourth, Sherando (13-11) found itself up 44-41 with 5.1 seconds left in the game. At that point, Benton was intentionally fouled and sent to the free-throw line, where he knocked down both shots to seal the playoff victory and keep the Warriors’ season alive.
“I was confident I was going to hit those,” Benton said. “I mean, I just needed to hit them. Gotta step up and do it. I didn’t really feel much pressure in that moment.”
Benton’s two free throws capped off his game-high 23 points, half of his team’s point total. The 6-foot-4 junior scored 14 of the Warriors’ final 16 points and was the engine behind the team’s 12-0 run in the middle of the fourth that gave Sherando the lead.
Benton started the 12-0 run with a euro-step layup. A few possessions later, he converted an and-1 layup to bring his team within three at 38-35.
Benton gave Sherando its first lead of the game since the opening basket in the first quarter when he drilled a 3-pointer from the right corner with just over three minutes remaining. That shot from beyond the arc gave Sherando a 39-38 lead, which they extended to 42-38 one minute later after Benton and Reth Puller (nine points) tacked on three free throws.
Wood’s Ethan Tran cut his team’s deficit to one point when he drilled a step-back 3-pointer at the top of the arc with 46 seconds remaining. But after Benton scored a layup on the following possession, Wood’s Ashby Copenhaver missed what would’ve been a game-tying 3-pointer with under 10 seconds remaining.
Benton’s free throws put the finishing touches on a 16-point fourth quarter. In the final period, he made all five of his shot attempts and all five of his free throws. Benton said it was the most points he’s ever scored in a quarter.
The Warriors’ comeback came after Wood (11-11) took a 38-30 lead with five minutes remaining. Benton knew someone had to step up if Sherando wanted to keep playing basketball this year.
“We needed a spark,” Benton said. “We were down by like eight in the [fourth] quarter or something. I saw we needed a spark. We had our whole team just making big plays at the end of a big playoff game.”
Sherando coach Garland Williams thought Benton provided an energy boost and was the driving force behind his team’s comeback.
“I’m just thankful that [Benton] did come alive because, at the beginning of the game, we didn’t think he was very active,” Williams said. “I don’t know what [was] going on, but he did come alive and did things to be active.”
Coming into Friday’s playoff matchup, Wood coach Ben Bates knew Benton was going to be a difficult matchup.
“That Benton kid just completely destroyed us,” Bates said. “We knew coming in he was their best player. He’s been shooting the ball at a very high level, and he’s been putting the ball on the floor. [He’s] really coming into his own as the [end of the] season gets going. It’s a tough pill to swallow.”
Had it not been for Benton’s play in the fourth, the Warriors were in real danger of having their season come to a close instead of Wood’s.
The Colonels dictated the pace in the first three quarters, holding the Warriors to just 26 points through 24 minutes of action.
Bates thought his team controlled the tempo of the entire game before the Warriors went on their run to take the lead late in the fourth.
“We were controlling the pace, and then I feel like at that point, the wheels fell off, and one mistake turned into two, two turned into three,” Bates said. “We just couldn’t sustain that run.”
Brodie Sirbaugh (13 points) hit a mid-range jumper at the free throw line as time expired in the second quarter to give the Colonels a three-point cushion heading into the locker room. The jumper gave Sirbaugh 11 points in the first half and seven points in the quarter — Ronnie Barrett (12 points) scored the other four for Wood in the second period.
Jordyn Sweetser chipped in seven points for the Colonels. Sweetser is one of five seniors on Wood’s roster alongside Paul Brooks, Zach Woskobunik, Alex Evans and Alex Gritton, and the group left a significant mark on the Colonels’ program in Bates’ mind.
“They’ve really helped us change the culture,” Bates said of his seniors. “It’s a program that traditionally isn’t in a lot of these games year after year, so for us to be able to host one of these games, be in it and really give it away [is tough].
“The seniors really helped change the culture, but hopefully, by the looks of the seniors’ faces, the other kids can look around and know that that’s how quickly it can come to an end.”
The Warriors will have their hands full when they travel to Handley (21-1) on Monday in the region quarterfinals.
“Just thankful to be able to play one more game,” Williams said.
For Benton, that one more game means having at least a few more days with this year’s team intact.
“I want all the time I can get with these guys,” Benton said. “So as many days as we can get, I’m grateful.”
— Contact Justin Robertson at jrobertson@winchesterstar.com
— Follow Justin Robertson on X @j_probertson