MaCallen McMillian didn’t hesitate either time — perhaps too inexperienced to reconsider on the first and perhaps confident based from the previous result on the second.
Platte County senior guard Jayden Martin goes up for a shot against Fort Osage on Friday night at Pirate Fieldhouse.
In what ended up a nearly impossible script, Platte County’s sophomore reserve guard hit game-winning 3-pointers in back-to-back games this past week. He nailed one from the left corner at the buzzer to down William Chrisman 63-62 on Monday in overtime and then hit from the opposite side of the court in the closing seconds of a 63-61 victory over Fort Osage in Friday night’s home finale.
McMillian continues to carve out an increasingly visible role, but importantly, his shot for the final points against Fort Osage helped deliver a victory on senior night for Jayden Martin, Platte County’s starting point guard and unquestioned leader during a difficult rebuilding season.
The only consistencies have been the inconsistency in play and lineups due to the unavailability of key players.
Platte County (7-19) now goes into Class 5 District 8 play having won three of the past four overall, including the first two and only victories in Suburban Conference White Division play in a span of four days. The Pirates had lost nine games by single digits and five by one possession prior to this past week when a pair of clutch 3-pointers changed the narrative at least temporarily.
On Friday night, Platte County honored Martin, a three-year contributor and lone player on the roster with significant varsity experience prior to this season, and Bryton Bertram before the third matchup of the season with Fort Osage (3-22). The two teams split the first two meetings and ended up going to another tight finish.
Platte County junior guard Jacoby Keith celebrates after hitting a 3-pointer against Fort Osage on Friday night at Pirate Fieldhouse.
Platte County trailed after the first quarter but led much of the rest of the way behind a game-high 19 points for junior guard Jacoby Keith (five 3-pointers) and 16 more from junior guard Jordan Moore. However, the Pirates’ issue with turnovers cropped up late leading to a three-point deficit with just over a minute left in regulation.
Fort Osage couldn’t hold the 61-58 lead.
With the lead down to one, Platte County junior guard Isaac Nelson, who didn’t score, came up with a steal, and the Pirates took a timeout with 23.2 seconds left. The play set Moore up with the ball penetrating into the lane before kicking out a cross-court pass to McMillian along the right baseline. He buried the shot with just over 6 seconds left on the clock.
Platte County survived the remainder, and teammates swarmed McMillian underneath the basket following the final buzzer for a celebration of his second straight game-winner. He finished with nine points, while junior forward Brock Dye (seven points) and juniors guards Elijah Hockaday and Andrew Parrish (one point apiece) also contributed on offense off the bench.
Fort Osage limited Martin to just six points in his final home game, while Bertram — a first-year member of the roster — received a start on senior night and scored four. The Indians won the previous conference matchup between the two teams just days after Platte County prevailed in their fifth-place game matchup at the Grain Valley Invitational.
Platte County junior guard Jordan Moore makes a pass against Fort Osage on Friday night at Pirate Fieldhouse.
Platte County also earned a split of the season series with William Chrisman, which led much of Tuesday’s matchup. The Bears were up double digits at various points before Moore (21 points), Keith (13 points) and Martin (nine points) helped lead a second half comeback.
The two teams finished regulation tied at 51-51 and then went back-and-forth in a high-scoring overtime period.
William Chrisman took a final lead at 62-60 on a 3-pointer with 10.5 seconds left, but after a timeout, Martin went the length of the court into the pain before kicking out to McMillian in the left corner. The shot went down as the buzzer sounded to allow Platte County avenge a 50-47 loss to the Bears back in December.
McMillian totaled eight points and combined with Martin, Moore and Keith to account for all but four of Platte County’s 42 points after halftime. Moore put up 16 of his 21 in the fourth quarter and overtime. Dye added eight points for the Pirates, while Nelson hit a 3-pointer and Hockaday split two free throws in the first quarter.
Platte County coach Rick Hodge continued to use a deep rotation this week with junior Jude Brown now out for the season. He went down with a foot injury just as Moore returned from missing the majority of three games with a sprained ankle. Both of those players carved out playing time after joining the team late after helping the Pirates’ football team win a second straight undefeated Class 5 state championship.
Martin, Moore and Keith have been the main scorers for Platte County, which didn’t win a game outside of tournament play until last week’s victory over Northeast (Kansas City). The Pirates have generally started Dye and Nelson alongside those three, while McMillian, Hockaday, Bertram and Parrish have become the top reserves.
In addition to the injuries for Moore and Brown, Platte County has also seen players unavailable at various times due illness and other circumstances. However, the Pirates seem to have found an identity but hold the No. 6 seed in the Class 5 District 8 tournament.
No. 3 seed Winnetonka (15-10) hosts Platte County on Tuesday in Kansas City with the winner advacing to play either No. 2 Pembroke Hill (11-14) or No. 7 Northeast (13-12).
