It took Chaminade-Julienne's Tamika Williams exactly 11 seconds to shut up the Toledo Central Catholic students, who greeted her St. John Arena appearance with a loud chorus of "Over-rated!...Over-rated!"
The C-J star won the center jump to open the game, had the ball instantly returned to her and then drove from midcourt on Central's All Ohio Ericka Haney to score the games first points.
By the end of the game, she had left many of those same detractors - and half the Central Catholic team - in tears. On a last-seconds play patterned from the Valparaiso Hail Mary score of NCAA Tournament fame, Williams gathered in a long Sarah Zawodny pass between three defenders at midcourt and, dribbling to the hoop against two of them, she scored the game-winning layup with three seconds left in the girls Division I state semifinals.
C-J's 57-56 victory in front of a crowd of 11,033 - third biggest in girls state basketball history - now pits the Eagles against Pickerington in tonight's title game.
After the game, Central coach Steve Pfahler sought out Williams, who had scored 28 points, and hugged her: "You're everything as advertized sweetheart. You're one hell of a player. Great players make great plays and that's just what you did."
Haney, a 6-1 All-Ohio choice who is headed to Notre Dame next season, held her own Friday night and scored 26 points.
"It was like watching a heavyweight prizefight the way those two went at it," said CJ coach Frank Goldsberry. "And the teams mirrored their stars."
Williams took the court with the initials L.P. etched on her sneakers and on the tape above her right ankle. It was a tribute to Lamar Pope, the 14-year-old son of her former AAU coach Troy Pope, who died earlier his month after breaking his neck in a freak, open-gym accident at Trotwood Madison Middle School. He had survived several months on a ventilator.
The boy couldn't have been memorialized by anyone better Friday night.
Williams is Dayton's first prep celebrity.
A National Honor society student with a 3.4 grade point average, she's almost as gifted in the classroom as on the court. Add in a megawatt personality and everyone seems drawn to her.
Just last week, an MTV crew filmed her for a day for a special show to air this spring. In the preseason, ESPN did a special segment on her. Halfway through the C-J season, Sports Illustrated featured her in a seven-page spread.
A few days ago, she was selected Ohio's Ms. Basketball - the first Miami Valley girl to win the award in the 11 years it has been given. Within the next couple of weeks, she might win the National Player of the Year for either Parade Magazine, USA Today or Gatorade/Scholastic Coach - she's a finalist for all three. The same goes for the Atlanta Touchdown Club's Naismith Award. In fact, look for her to win more than one of these awards.
Perhaps the most recruited girls basketball player in the nation this season, Williams got so many college letters and packages sent to her Retford Avenue home that the mailman, as well as the UPS delivery man, became so intrigued that they became two of her most ardent fans and showed up at most of her games.
When Ohio State brought her in for a visit, former Buckeye great Archie Griffin gave her one of his Heisman rings to wear. Georgia coach Andy Landers took Williams and her mom to an all you-can-eat seafood buffet one night, then roasted a pig at his home the next night.
Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma cooked steaks on the grill, while his wife, according to Williams, made her "special dip," brought out pineapples covered with tooth-picked shrimp and then tossed the trump card and brought out the Italian dishes.
Whether it was the food, the fact that when she visited the Connecticut campus during a severe ice storm some 9,000 people showed up for the women's team game, the idea of playing with four other top national players signed by the Huskies or simply the prospect of playing for one of the top women's programs in the nation - Williams was sold on Connecticut from early in he recruiting process.
That's why she bought tickets to this weekend's NCAA Women's East Regional at UD Arena, where Connecticut opens up this afternoon against Arizona.
"I guess I'll have to get rid of those first tickets," Williams said. "I've got some unfinished business here at St. John Arena."
TY GREENLEES/DAYTON DAILY NEWS
* CONTACT Tom Archdeacon at 225-2156 or e-mail him at
tom_archdeacon@coxohio.com