EAGLES UPSET PALMETTO IN OVERTIME

Gio Gonzalez scored on a driving lay-up with one second remaining in overtime to give Southwest a 63-61 victory over Palmetto in the South Dade shoot out. The game was close the entire way, tied 10-10 after one quarter, and the Eagles (10-11) on top, 29-26, at the half. Southwest's biggest lead was 7 points midway through the third period, but the Panthers (15-6) cut the margin to 41-35 entering the fourth quarter. Palmetto went up by one with 2:07 left in regulation, but a 3-pointer by Brian Stewart and two foul shots by Ray Lleonart put the Eagles up by 4 with 57 seconds remaining. Tim Hardaway, Jr. made two baskets in the final 46 seconds for the Panthers to tie the game at 54 and force overtime. Neither team led by more than 2 points in the extra period and, with the game still tied at 61 with 19.7 seconds, Southwest called timeout and set up Gonzalez' heroics. Michael Juachon had a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds while Lleonart dished out 6 assists. The win gives the Eagles their first 10-win season since 2001-02. In personnel news, senior Omar Morell quit the team before the game and Adrian Couto, Alex Felipe, and Dennis Urbina were all promoted from the junior varsity. None of them saw game action against Palmetto. The Eagles, now 3-0 in overtime games, are off until Tuesday, Feb. 10, when they face Coral Park in the District Tournament at South Miami.
The scoring:
Gonzalez 22
Stewart 14
Juachon 13
Lleonart 11
Portales 2
Godoy 1

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