JAKE’S TAKE: Young’s epic duel with Tatu one for the record books
It seemed like a weekly occurrence in the locker room.
Troy junior sensation James Young would come within mere points of a 40-point game, agoal he’s held since the beginning of the season. 36. 37. 36 again.
So close, he kept thinking.
He finally did it against Clarkston — after all those times coming up short, on the biggest of stages, Young hit his milestone against the fifth-ranked team in Michigan’s Class A polls.
Moments later, it was time to move on. Young came within one point of 50, and immediately made that his next goal.
“I’ve been wanting this since the beginning of the season,” Young said. “I feel like I’ve got a weight off my shoulders. It’s a goal that I can check off my list and go for 50.”
He just outlasted Clarkston senior Nick Tatu, one of the best shooters in the area, who scored 47 points on 12 3-pointers. His team just outlasted the Wolves, who came in at 14-1, with an effort that included solid defense.
Young and Tatu matched nearly shot-for-shot all night, but Young had just enough consistency and power to win both battles: the scoring and the game.
“It was incredible, really,” Clarkston coach Dan Fife said. “I’ve never seen anything like that.”
Here’s how it all went down:
Tatu 3, Young 0: The scoring started in just 1:13 when Tatu knocked down his first 3 pointer. Clarkston came out and kept the tempo at a reasonable pace so Young couldn’t take over the game right away.
Tatu 3, Young 3: It took him 3:21, but Young got on the board. Clarkston had come out in a deliberate, half-court style that they’ve perfected under coach Dan Fife. But Troy’s star struck back by running off a screen and nailing a 3-pointer from the left wing.
Young 7, Tatu 3: Young went inside to fight the Wolves, and though Clarkston plays as disciplined and solid basketball as there is in the area, Young was too athletic and too strong for the Wolves Tuesday. The junior grabbed a third- and fourth-chance rebound and put it back.
It took speed and athleticism to beat top-ten Detroit Community in January. It took added strength and toughness to outmuscle the Wolves. Troy was outrebounding them at one point 11-6.
Tatu 11, Young 7: Immediately, Tatu had the one-on-one lead back, knocking in a layup on the fast break sandwiched between 3-pointers. His team, though, ended the quarter down by four.
Tatu 13, Young 9: After Clarkston surged to open the second quarter, Young threw down an alley-oop layup off an in-bounds pass to give Troy the lead back.
Still, it didn’t seem like he could score like this all night.
Tatu 19, Young 16: Clarkston’s sharpshooter struck again with his fifth triple of the night, tying the game. But Young came right back on the next possession by going inside for a basket, plus a foul. The game went to the half knotted at 30.
Tatu 19, Young 19: Out of the locker room, Young ran off two screens on the baseline for a wide-open 3-pointer that gave Troy the lead and tied the score between him and Tatu.
Young 23, Tatu 19: Young came out with new fire in the second half, taking over the game. Sophomore Craig Duggan’s long in-bounds pass went to Young, who, all alone, slammed home a dunk to put Troy up five.
Young 23, Tatu 22: Just 12 ticks after Young’s thunderous slam, Tatu silenced the crowd with a 3, his sixth.
Troy came out in a zone in the second half and pressured Tatu on his shots, but both stars were on fire, and nothing would stop them.
Young 31, Tatu 27: Young keyed a late spurt to finish the third quarter. He knocked down a 3-pointer and put back a miss on the glass to put Troy up six.
Young 37, Tatu 30: Young didn’t hesitate to penetrate the stingy Clarkston defense, scoring six points early to put Troy up by nine. But that was the largest lead of the game, as…
Young 37, Tatu 33: …Tatu tacked on three more through a tight close-out. Young wasn’t getting off the hook. 58-54, Troy.
Young 40, Tatu 37: Just after Young reached 40, Tatu came down, hit a 3, drew a foul, and made the free throw to cut the deficit to 63-60.
Young 44, Tatu 37: Young hit two more free throws, making him seven-for-10, as Clarkston point guard Mitch Baenzinger fouled out.
Young 44, Tatu 41: This turnaround was only 15 seconds as Tatu came down for his second four-point play of the game, cutting the deficit back down to three.
Young 47, Tatu 44: After three more free throws for Young, Tatu hit his 11th 3-pointer. Still, Troy led 74-69 with the ball and 37 seconds left.
Young 49, Tatu 44: Young rounded out his career-high, unbelievable, jaw-dropping night with two more free throws. That iced the game at 77-71 with 18 seconds left.
Young 49, Tatu 47: As if 44 wasn’t enough, Tatu hit his 12th 3-pointer. It was one-handed, acrobatic, and perhaps his best of the night, but it was meaningless. Troy strode off with its first win over Clarkston in almost a decade. Young outdid Tatu by two, and the Colts trumped the Wolves, 79-74.
As he has been for nearly a month, Young backed up the national hype he’s been receiving as the No. 10 junior college prospect in America.
He added 20 rebounds in what coach Gary Fralick called the best individual performance he’s ever coached. Fralick added that 49 was more than likely a school record.
And after 32 minutes of yelling, strategizing, and instructing, Fralick finally smiled.
“It’s a special night,” the coach said.
And Young? Well, he just started trying for 50.
(Jake Lourim is a junior at Troy High School and part of the AdaVan Media Group / www.northoaklandsports.com Student Correspondent Program.)
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