Aayden Ghee once again the hero as Jupiter High girls basketball wins postseason thriller

JUPITER — Aayden Ghee was once again the difference in an overtime playoff victory as Jupiter girls basketball defeated visiting Vero Beach 48-41 Thursday, advancing to the regional semifinals for the first time since 2011.

Last week, Ghee hit the game-winning shot in overtime as Jupiter beat Palm Beach Lakes in the district final. This time, the senior led the Warriors with a team-high 21 points, including virtually every point in overtime as Jupiter out-scored Vero Beach 8-1 in the extra period to win the 3-7A regional quarterfinal. 

“Like you said earlier, ice in my veins,” Ghee said. “I’ve always been clutch. Big-time rebounds, big-time steals. Those are the possessions that come down to it and you see who can score.”

Ghee's heroics, and Lakes' victory over Port St. Lucie-Centennial, sets up a rematch in Tuesday's regional semis as Jupiter hosts Lakes.

More:Palm Beach Lakes rides stout defense, Zaida Gonzalez to regional semi matchup with Jupiter

More:High school roundup: King's Academy girls basketball cruises to regional quarterfinal win

While Jupiter (11-3) started slow out of the gate in that comeback win against Palm Beach Lakes, the home team began quick and decisive Thursday.

The Warriors jumped out to an eight-point lead, but multiple players, including seniors Ghee and Veronica Edwards, ran into foul trouble. The latter of the two was taken out once she picked up her third foul in the first half, and when the Warriors lost their middle presence, Vero Beach (13-5) began to find footing in a second-period surge.

“We’re all close family,” Edwards said. “When one of us goes down, when one of us isn’t in the game, we just can’t click the same way as we normally do. When I’m in the game, it’s not necessarily my points or anything, it’s the feeling of us being together on the court.”

Last week:Behind Ghee's buzzer-beater, Jupiter girls basketball defeats PB Lakes to win districts

Vero Beach’s momentum continued into the second half, and the Indians took over first lead of the game late in the third quarter.

“Really, the whole game, I was just praying,” Vero’s Sara Pedraza said. “I would just be running down the court and even if I had pain, the Lord would move through me and work through me. He helped me hit those free throws at the end, got into overtime, and we just couldn’t finish.”

The senior injured her hands in the fourth quarter, but still managed a team-high 18 points. Teammate Ratajah Dawson added 11 points.

“Sara was huge,” Vero Beach head coach Jennifer Potter said. “Great kid. Hard worker. Never gives up on anything."

With the Warriors trailing late, a traditional three-point play from Edwards propelled Jupiter back into the lead, 38-36, with 1:47 left. But the Indians hung around and got a fortuitous bounce with time running out, as a scramble underneath ended with a Destiny Nelson layup that sent the game into overtime, knotted at 40-all. 

But in overtime, Ghee took over. Her free throw with 1:07 left gave the Warriors a 45-41 lead, and her basket with 38.8 seconds left sealed the Jupiter win. 

“This team gave it everything they had from start to finish,” Potter said. “They got down and came back and left it all on the court at the end. It just came down to a couple little things that we didn’t do.”

For Jupiter, both Edwards and Elliana Manzo added 10 points apiece, setting up a rematch with Lakes. This time, it's win-or-go-home.

“I told the kids, ‘at this stage in the game, everybody’s a quality team,’” Jupiter head coach Michael Lynch said. “We faced a little adversity and we fought through it. And that’s what life’s all about, right?”