Johnstown – Cam Gibson didn’t have an explanation for his third-quarter disappearing act Tuesday night.
Fortunately, his reappearance in the fourth quarter spoke volumes for Roosevelt. It also upheld his reputation.
“I’ve been known to be streaky,” Gibson said with a smile and shake of his head. “I get in a rhythm and I just go from there. Once I hit a shot, I get a whole bunch of confidence and it keeps on rising.”
Gibson outscored Estes Park in the fourth quarter, overcoming a scoreless third quarter as the ninth-ranked Roughriders gained control of the Class 3A Patriot League West with a hard-fought 69-63 victory.
Gibson knocked down 12 of his game-high 20 points in the final eight minutes and the Roughriders outscored their visitors 18-10 behind a key 8-0 run. Gibson was 8-for-8 from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter, and his steal and layup with 3:37 remaining had Roosevelt in control, leading 64-57.
Roosevelt (17-1, 6-1 in league) won its fifth straight game and avenged its only loss of the season – a 65-63 defeat at Estes Park. The Roughriders needed to win by three or more points Tuesday to earn the tiebreaker over the Bobcats and can secure the top seed with a win over Erie in their regular-season finale.
Roughriders senior Carlos Valles scored 15 points and put the clamps on Estes Park standout Luke Luedtke. Luedtke had 15 points by halftime but was held to just three points in the second half on 1-of-6 shooting.
“In the first half, I was studying him a little bit, getting used to what he does,” Valles said. “The second half was a matter of stopping him and not letting him catch the ball.”
Estes Park (13-4, 6-1) rode junior Cory Carroll-Clifton down the stretch as the junior scored 15 of his 18 points after halftime before fouling out.
The back-and-forth game had 12 lead changes and 12 ties before Roosevelt went up for good on Valles’ layup with 5:16 remaining. The Roughriders kept Estes Park scoreless for nearly three minutes and made the Bobcats wait until the 1:26 mark for their next basket.
“Estes came to win,” Roosevelt coach Mike Predmore said. “This was a fun game.”
Estes Park coach Billy Ricketts probably wouldn’t agree, as he refused to answer questions afterward.
Estes Park 13 20 20 10 – 63
Roosevelt 13 20 18 18 – 69
Estes Park – Dreiling 3 2-2 8, Schwery 3 2-3 9, Luedtke 6 4-5 18, Brown 2 2-2 6, Schwab 1 0-0 2, Kingswood 0 2-2 2, Carroll-Clifton 7 4-6 18. Totals 22 16-20 63.
Roosevelt – Washington 1 0-0 2, Hildreth 1 1-2 3, Gibson 5 8-8 20, Lydon 3 0-0 8, McFarland 5 2-2 14, Wilson 1 1-2 3, Valles 6 3-5 15, Widdifield 0 0-0 0, Hess 1 2-3 4. Totals 23 17-22 69.
3-point goals – Luedtke 2, Schwery; Gibson 2, Lydon 2, McFarland 2. Total fouls – Estes Park 19, Roosevelt 19. Fouled out – Dreiling, Carroll-Clifton; Hess. Technicals – Hildreth.
