By Jim Manion
Record-Courier correspondent
WINDHAM - The Windham Bombers came within inches and seconds of springing a major upset in the Portage Trail Conference County Division Friday night.
Division co-leader Streetsboro escaped with a 64-63 victory on Marty Hill Court to maintain an unblemished 5-0 division mark, as Dan Spindler's free throw with 11.3 seconds remaining proved to be the game-winner.
After trailing by as many as 11 points, the Bombers held the Rockets to only seven points in the fourth quarter and missed the potential game-winning shot as the buzzer sounded.
"Thank goodness for experience," said a happy and relieved Rockets coach Todd Muckleroy following the thriller. "Any time you come into this place and win it's like stealing something. Windham already had two division losses, and this was one of their windows of opportunity (to get back in the race). They really play hard."
Streetsboro (8-1, 5-0 PTC County) jumped out to a quick lead in the first quarter, and the defending County Division champions appeared to have the evening under control.
Robert Wilson quickly showed the Windham crowd why he was the PTC County Division Player of the Year last season. The 6-foot-4 guard drove the baseline and dished off to teammate Carrington Hanna for an assist on Streetsboro's first possession, scored on a baseline layup, then came back with a tip-in.
After Hanna and Rico Smith tossed in a pair of 3-pointers, Wilson drilled a 3 from the wing and Streetsboro led 21-9.
Wilson finished the night with 25 points, 14 rebounds, three steals and four assists. Hanna also had a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds, while Malcolm Brooks scored 13 points and pulled down six boards.
But Windham (4-4, 2-3) suddenly came back in the second quarter and took the lead as Clayton Ridenbaugh (14 points, four 3-pointers) found his 3-point range.
By the time the first half ended both teams had scored 11 3s. The lead changed hands three times and the game was tied three times before Streetsboro emerged with a 42-40 halftime advantage.
The Rockets pushed the lead to 57-48 lead after three quarters, then Hanna hit a jumper for a 59-48 lead.
The Bombers' thrilling fourth-quarter comeback was keyed in part by 5-foot-5 Cody Washington, who played much bigger than his size. He had four steals on the night and always seemed to be making plays on loose balls.
The first three Windham baskets in the fourth quarter all came on putbacks, first from senior Cody Apthorpe and then a pair by sophomore Derris Hunt.
Apthorpe then hit Hunt with an outlet pass off a rebound for a fastbreak basket, and the lead was down to only five points. Rico Hall, who had 11 points, then hit a 3-pointer to cut the lead to 61-59.
Wilson hit a pair of free throws, but Apthorpe countered with another putback. With only 42 seconds left on the clock, Hall drove the paint and scored to tie the game at 63-63.
Apthorpe hit for 26 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. Also finishing with a double-double was Hunt, who piled up 10 points and 11 rebounds in his best effort of the season.
Both teams had opportunities from the charity stripe but could not take advantage. Streetsboro was only 5-of-16, while Windham was 3-of-13 from the line.
"The kids gave a great effort. I can't fault that. But you can't shoot that kind of percentage from the foul line in a big game like this," said Windham veteran coach Marty Hill.
"They have a lot of weapons, and when they race up and down the floor they can make some shots. I thought we did a good job late when we switched to man, but things just didn't bounce our way."