Allen escapes with 6A championship after OT thriller

Allen 49 Katy Tompkins 47 F/OT

SAN ANTONIO - Jaylen Walker had a great look to give Allen their first ever state basketball championship at the end of regulation.

His shot just missed, but Walker more than made up for it in OT, finding a streaking Donovan Parham for a wide open full-court layup with 1.1 seconds left after Jamal Bieniemy’s potential game winner for Katy Tompkins was deflected to him. After 4 straight timeouts, Bieniemy had a prayer from the volleyball line go unanswered and the Eagles became the first school since Duncanville in 1999-2000 to win titles in both football and basketball in the state’s largest classification.

Allen got it done with defense for the third straight game, holding Tompkins to under 42% from the floor and only 27% from three. The Eagles might have been the most efficient team in San Antonio, making over half of their shots for the second consecutive game. Walker was one of the major factors into this level of efficiency, going 4-6 from deep and scoring 18 points. Isaiah Stevens added 11 on top of 5 assists.

Tompkins was much more successful on the defensive end than in their semifinal against Tyrese Maxey and South Garland, though their offensive production took a hit against Allen's disciplined group. Bieniemy and CJ Washington paced the Falcons with 15 each, with Eden Holt hitting a pair of clutch threes for 6 points.

Holt's second three pointer might have won the game for Tompkins, putting them up 47-45 in the overtime period, before Walker swished a pair of free throws and held firm on defense to send Parham into open court on a run-out and the rest of his Allen teammates into absolute hysteria.