High school basketball games don’t get much louder than Hawkins Arena was when Stratford star Khalil Green hit the winning layup and free throw in the final seconds of the GIAA 4A state championship Saturday night. The shot lifted the Eagles over St. Anne-Pacelli 65-64 and brought a deafening Stratford crowd to its feet.

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As soon as the final buzzer and trophy presentation were done a crowd swarmed Green, just as loud as they had been when his shot dropped through the net mere minutes prior.

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“Ball don’t lie!” one person shouted. Echoes of “KG! KG!” rang through the arena as Green shook seemingly endless hands. Eagles head coach Jarvis Smith said it best after the game: “He’s that guy.”

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Green’s layup helped Stratford take down the Vikings in a title game for the ages that saw several lead changes, two of which came in the final quarter. The championship is the first for the Eagles since 2014, when they won the GISA 3A tournament. Green was a driving force for Stratford the entire night.

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“He’s been the best player on the floor, you could argue, all year for us,” Smith said after the game. “He’s been the guy for us all year, we took that timeout before the shot and we told him… And he did it for us.”

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Green’s shot was preceded by a clutch three-point play by freshman Josh Jackson that brought the Eagles within two points of the Vikings. Jackson also hit multiple deep jumpers down the stretch.

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“As a freshman, he has played so amazing all season,” Smith said of Jackson. “We relied on him a lot tonight and he kept up what he’s done all year. What a great play.”

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Stratford came into the title game with the No. 1 seed and a 26-2 record. The Eagles ended their season on an appropriate note and gave head coach Jarvis Smith a title in his very first season with Stratford.

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“Any championship feels good,” Smith said. “But it’s that much more special when it’s in your first year. We battled all year long, they did a great job. The boys pulled us through.”

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Stratford dominated for most of the first period, finishing the quarter with a 20-7 lead. The Vikings roared back in the second, reclaiming the lead thanks to a trio of long-distance three-pointers from TJ Smith.

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An acrobatic jumper turned three-point play by freshman star Jayddence Ford put an exclamation point on St. Anne-Pacelli’s comeback. The Vikings led 37-29 at half, nearly equaling the 13-point deficit they erased in the second quarter.

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Both squads traded big blows in the third quarter, including a sequence of threes from both teams that brought the crowd to life. Pacelli barely held onto the lead through the third, entering the final period up 50-48.

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The fourth quarter went down to the wire, with Jackson providing one of the most intense moments of the game thanks to a jumper that drew a foul. His free throw put the Eagles within two with just a minute to play.

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After Pacelli went up by two, Green called game with his layup. Pacelli had a chance to score, but a missed free throw marked the end of a dramatic game.

High school basketball games don’t get much louder than Hawkins Arena was when Stratford star Khalil Green hit the winning layup and free throw in the final seconds of the GIAA 4A state championship Saturday night. The shot lifted the Eagles over St. Anne-Pacelli 65-64 and brought a deafening Stratford crowd to its feet.

[–>

As soon as the final buzzer and trophy presentation were done a crowd swarmed Green, just as loud as they had been when his shot dropped through the net mere minutes prior.

[–>

“Ball don’t lie!” one person shouted. Echoes of “KG! KG!” rang through the arena as Green shook seemingly endless hands. Eagles head coach Jarvis Smith said it best after the game: “He’s that guy.”

[–>

Green’s layup helped Stratford take down the Vikings in a title game for the ages that saw several lead changes, two of which came in the final quarter. The championship is the first for the Eagles since 2014, when they won the GISA 3A tournament. Green was a driving force for Stratford the entire night.

[–>

“He’s been the best player on the floor, you could argue, all year for us,” Smith said after the game. “He’s been the guy for us all year, we took that timeout before the shot and we told him… And he did it for us.”

[–>

Green’s shot was preceded by a clutch three-point play by freshman Josh Jackson that brought the Eagles within two points of the Vikings. Jackson also hit multiple deep jumpers down the stretch.

[–>

“As a freshman, he has played so amazing all season,” Smith said of Jackson. “We relied on him a lot tonight and he kept up what he’s done all year. What a great play.”

[–>

Stratford came into the title game with the No. 1 seed and a 26-2 record. The Eagles ended their season on an appropriate note and gave head coach Jarvis Smith a title in his very first season with Stratford.

[–>

“Any championship feels good,” Smith said. “But it’s that much more special when it’s in your first year. We battled all year long, they did a great job. The boys pulled us through.”

[–>

Stratford dominated for most of the first period, finishing the quarter with a 20-7 lead. The Vikings roared back in the second, reclaiming the lead thanks to a trio of long-distance three-pointers from TJ Smith.

[–>

An acrobatic jumper turned three-point play by freshman star Jayddence Ford put an exclamation point on St. Anne-Pacelli’s comeback. The Vikings led 37-29 at half, nearly equaling the 13-point deficit they erased in the second quarter.

[–>

Both squads traded big blows in the third quarter, including a sequence of threes from both teams that brought the crowd to life. Pacelli barely held onto the lead through the third, entering the final period up 50-48.

[–>

The fourth quarter went down to the wire, with Jackson providing one of the most intense moments of the game thanks to a jumper that drew a foul. His free throw put the Eagles within two with just a minute to play.

[–>

After Pacelli went up by two, Green called game with his layup. Pacelli had a chance to score, but a missed free throw marked the end of a dramatic game.