With the season on the line for the top-ranked team in the nation, five-star junior Cameron Boozer came through in the clutch as he spun through the lane to slam home a dunk in traffic with five seconds remaining to tie things up at 57-57 and send the FHSAA Class 7A state title into overtime.
Columbus (Miami, Fla.) (28-4) went on to claim their third consecutive state championship with a 72-67 victory over No. 10 Oak Ridge (Orlando, Fla.) on Saturday paced by 24 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and three steals from Cameron Boozer.
A three-pointer from Cameron Simpson with 4:40 remaining tied things up at 52-52 after the Pioneers erased a 16-point third quarter deficit and rallied back with a 13-0 run late in the third quarter.
Top 40 Michigan State signee Jase Richardson responded with a three-pointer on the other end to give them a 55-52 advantage with four minutes remaining before back-to-back baskets from Three-star Virginia Tech signee Tyler Johnson and four-star junior Jalen Reece gave Oak Ridge their first advantage since the opening minutes of the contest with one minute and 20 seconds to go.
After a missed layup from Cameron Boozer on the other end with 30 seconds to go in the fourth quarter, Oak Ridge converted one-of-two free throws to open to the door for Boozer's game-tying dunk in the final seconds.
Senior guard Randy Smith opened up overtime with a three-pointer from the right corner before the teams traded free throws back-and-forth before a rebound and layup from Georgia Southern pledge Jordan Tillery cut the deficit to 64-61 with just over one minute remaining in the overtime session.
Following a pair of made free throws from top 20 junior Cayden Boozer with just over 30 seconds remaining in the overtime period, Simpson knocked down a three-pointer with 30 seconds to go to cut the deficit to 68-66.
Smith converted a pair of free throws for the Explorers to give them a four-point advantage before a stop on the other end secured the victory for Columbus.
Tillery finished with 16 points and 13 rebounds for Oak Ridge (27-4) in the loss, while four-star junior Jamier Jones finished with 16 points and four rebounds.
Cayden Boozer played a key role in the championship game victory, finishing with 16 points, nine rebounds and five assists. ...
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