5A state tournament opens with major upset. How Meridian knocked off defending champs
Few gave Meridian a chance Thursday. But that’s just how the Warriors liked it.
No. 7 Meridian upset No. 2 Owyhee 51-48 in overtime to open the 5A boys basketball state tournament at the Ford Idaho Center, delivering a shock to one of the favorites and the defending champs.
“We all believe we can go far, and win,” Meridian senior guard Josh Christensen said. “We all believe in each other.”
That belief was in short supply outside the Warriors’ locker room to start the week. Owyhee (19-6) had already blown out the Warriors (15-11) twice this year, scoring a 19-point win in December before a 23-point rout in the district semifinals last week.
But none of those scores carried over to Thursday.
“We’ve got a lot of pride,” Meridian coach Jeff Sanor said. “Nobody likes to get run out of a gym. So we were pretty upset, and we tried to use that as fuel to play our hardest.”
Owyhee looked to turn the game into another blowout early, leading by as many as 11 points in the second quarter. But Meridian slowly chipped away in the third quarter, and retook the lead on Ryan Baker’s and-one on an 8-foot fadeaway to open the fourth quarter.
Sanor said the rally didn’t come from a fire-and-brimstone halftime speech. Instead, he made a simple drawing.
“This is going to sound corny,” Sanor said. “But I came in and I drew a big heart on the board. And I’m like, ‘This isn’t about X’s and O’s. This is just about who is going to play with more heart.’
“And I think in the second half, that was us.”
The 5A Southern Idaho Conference played with a shot clock all season, but the state tournament doesn’t use one. So tied at 41 with 2:13 left, Owyhee pulled the ball out and held for the last shot. Cameron Downie missed a corner 3-pointer, and T.J. Sanor stuffed a putback from Jayce Allen at the buzzer, sending the game to overtime.
Given another four minutes, Meridian didn’t waste any of it. The underdog took the first lead in the extra frame and never surrendered it.
Baker continued to carry the Warriors, pouring in a game-high 28 points on 9-for-16 shooting, including 4-for-6 behind the 3-point line. The performance followed his game-winning shot with 1.1 seconds left Saturday to earn the Warriors a spot at state.
“He’s a phenomenal player,” Christensen said. “He’s always going hard. He’s very competitive. And he always keeps us cool.”
Meridian stormed the court after the upset, then headed to the student section to celebrate the stunning victory. But Sanor said the 2021 state champs don’t want just one win at the Idaho Center. They are here for all three and another title.
“Towards the middle of the season, we kind of went downhill,” Baxter said. “I knew that our team is way better than that. I just want to prove to everybody else that we’re that team. That we can beat anybody.”
Junior Liam Campbell led Owyhee with 24 points on 8-for-17 shooting. But the Storm let a comeback chance slip away when they missed four straight free throws in the final minute of overtime.
This story was originally published March 2, 2023 at 4:31 PM.
