Westwood erased a 5 point deficit in the final 35 seconds Monday night. But North was able to find just one more bucket.
The North Gators got a rebound and a put back at the buzzer to leave Manchester’s Joel Vinson Gymnasium with a 41-39 win.
The Rockets made things interesting throughout. After leading 20-11 at one point early in the second half, Westwood watched its lead dwindle and completely evaporate in the forth when North took a 37-34 lead on a rebound and put back by Gavin Wise. North added 2 more to extend its lead to 39-34 before Westwood stormed back.
The quick comeback started when Kaysen Lowery cut down the lane and finished a tough basket while drawing a foul, adding a free throw to make the score 39-37. A quick Westwood steal set up Lowery again, who tied the game at 39-39 with 12 seconds to play.
Lowery paced the Rockets with 14 points. Davis McKenzie added 10, including a big corner 3-pointer with 2:55 to play to push the WMS lead to 32-27 at the time.
Also scoring for Westwood were Blake Cummings with 6, Lane Fann 3, Will Rogers 2 and Matthew White 2.
The loss drops the Westwood boys to 0-2 on the season. The Rockets return to action Tuesday, Nov. 2 when Harris Middle comes to Manchester.
