Arizona wins heart-stopper

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It was quite a show when the National Indian Athletic Association (NIAA) brought the game Canadian James Naismith's invented home to Canada on April 21. The men's basketball final was a blowout, but the women's final just couldn't have been any closer.

A good sized Saturday night crowd at Calgary's Crescent Heights senior high school gym was treated to some serious basketball as the NIAA annual showcase was hosted in Canada for the very first time. The two championship games capped off four days of tournament play involving 28 teams.

The Itausha Hawks of San Jose, Calif. turned the much anticipated re-match of last year's championship clash with Standing Rock (North Dakota) reservation's Iron Five into a bit of a disappointment in the men's final. On the strength of an MVP performance by Allan Spoonhunter and standout guard T.J. Camel, the Californians jumped out to a big lead in the early going and held on for their second straight NIAA championship with a 114-91 win.

Two time defending champion Team Arizona had a much harder time putting their third straight national women's championship into the record books. The Dakota-Oklahoma Stars and Reds missed the championship by, perhaps, an eighth of an inch in a game packed with drama.

Dakota-Oklahoma trailed by nine after one quarter and by five points at the half but they kept battling and took their first lead of the night with 5:54 remaining in the game. From there, the team took turns holding the lead until, with 1:16 remaining, the challengers held a 90-87 edge.

The defending champs from Arizona showed their nerves in the last minute, missing several chances to erase the three-point deficit. Just when it appeared their championship streak was about to end, former WNBA player Ryneldie Becanti, the Team Arizona leader, took matters into her own hands. Becanti dropped a three-pointer with 7.1 seconds remaining and overtime appeared to be looming.

But when the Stars and Reds in-bounded the ball, Arizona's Corny Nez stole it at mid-court and was fouled. With just three seconds remaining, Nez went to the foul line shooting two and made them both.

While the crowd was still digesting that shocking turn of events, the Reds and Stars had one last, faint hope. Two quick in-bound passes resulted in a desperation shot by Audrey Jacob from just across the centre line. Time ran out as the shot was launched but it would have counted if it had gone through the hoop and would have provided the Dakota-Oklahoma team with a stunning one-point victory.

But the ball circled the rim twice and then fell away, leaving Team Arizona as champions, instead.

There was talk in the stands that the foul call with seven seconds remaining was bad officiating, that the referees decided the game instead of letting the players settle it. Arizona coach Tom Jones wasn't about to second-guess the refs.

"Well, it's hard to say," he answered when asked if it was the wrong call. "But it was a judgement call and they made it."

Corny Nez had no doubt it was the right call.

"I got hit in the head," she said, pointing at the beginnings of a bruise on her forehead.

Nez was enjoying the limelight after the game. Sprawled on the gym floor in front of the team bench with a beaming smile on her face, she was thinking about what would have happened if she'd missed those foul shots.

"I was standing at the line and thinking, 'Please stop shaking,'" she said.

Glad it was over, she made it evident that there's a good side and a bad side to the pressure of such a moment.

"Hey, this is what you live for, the love of the game, right?" she said, laughing.

Nez wouldn't have gotten her chance if it wasn't for the heroics of Becanti. With her team on the ropes with less than five minutes remaining and the momentum in favor of the opposition, the Team Arizona guard made a play that created a five point swing in her club's favor. As Becanti attempted to grab a loose ball under her own basket, she dove with her fet in bounds and the ball in the air out of bounds and secured possession and called a time out before crashing to the floor. Had any part of her body landed before the time out call, the Reds and Stars would have gained possession. Instead, Becanti prevented a probable two points by the other team and then led the attack down the floor for a three pointer.

Having stabilized things with her quick thinking, the talented ball handler then evened the score with a long distance three-pointer.

"At that time, I knew I had to step up," the former pro said. "I knew I had to take that shot."

Becenti, a former Arizona State University star, was later named as the women's MVP.