Wylie junior Shamya Johnson (33) scored the game-winning basket in a 33-32 road win over Sachse on Friday, Jan. 16. Photo by Tina Lopez / C&S Media
By David Wolman
With the Wylie girls basketball team struggling to make shots over the first three quarters of last Friday’s District 9-6A road game at Sachse, head coach Nate Heckelman kept repeating the same message to his players — don’t get discouraged.
Sachse held Wylie to just 18 points over that span, but Heckelman knew that at some point the misses would turn into makes.
The Lady Pirates worked through those struggles and delivered when it mattered most. Junior guard Shamya Johnson sank the go-ahead 3-pointer with 2.9 seconds left, and Wylie held on for a 33-32 victory to stun Sachse on its home court in a pivotal District 9-6A contest.
“I would rather win ugly than lose pretty,” Heckelman said. “I’d rather score 33 points a game and win than score 68 and lose. The girls showed fight the entire game, didn’t put their heads down. They battled for all 32 minutes, and it paid off for us.”
With Wylie trailing by one and the final seconds ticking away, junior Skylar Harvey took two dribbles inside the 3-point line and kicked the ball out to Johnson, who buried the shot to give the Lady Pirates their first lead of the game after trailing for the first 31 minutes.
“I tried to call a timeout, but the ref kind of looked at me, and I decided to let them play,” Heckelman said. “We kicked it out to Shamya. She struggled in the first half, but she’s always confident in herself, and I have confidence in her. So does everyone else on the team. It says a lot about her character to step up and take that shot in that moment. She’s just scratching the surface of what she’s capable of.”
Sachse still had a chance to win, but a pass inbounded near midcourt with 1.9 seconds left went through the hands of a Lady Mustangs player, and the Mustangs were unable to get off a shot before time expired.
Despite the loss, it was a historic night for one Sachse player.
Senior forward Arianna Gregory entered the night with 999 career points, one shy of becoming the program’s latest member of the 1,000-point club.
After sophomore Trinity Thompson scored the game’s first five points, Gregory reached the milestone with 1:05 left in the first quarter, taking a pass from Thompson and drilling a 3-pointer. Gregory’s teammates on the bench and fans holding “1,000” signs behind them leaped in celebration. Her accomplishment was recognized at halftime of the boys game.
Gregory finished with nine points, while Thompson added 11 for Sachse (16-9, 8-2).
Junior Lily Burrow led all scorers with 12 points, including a 3-pointer with 6:33 left in the third quarter that gave Sachse a 24-14 lead.
The Lady Mustangs twice led by 12 points in the third quarter but managed just one free throw and a Thompson layup in the fourth.
The biggest momentum swing came when Wylie implemented a full-court press with three minutes remaining.
The defensive pressure overwhelmed Sachse. The Lady Mustangs struggled to break the press, committing nine turnovers over the final eight minutes — many of them in the final three.
Johnson and Harvey each scored nine points to pace Wylie (18-6, 10-0), with Johnson’s late 3-pointer capping a stunning rally.
“All game, I told them to be confident and that the shots would eventually fall,” Heckelman said. “We weren’t hitting shots in the first half, but we kept telling them to stay positive and encourage each other. When they shot the ball with confidence, they hit some big shots for us at the end. It was good to see.”
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