It took four extra minutes, plenty of willpower and the luckiest of breaks.

Estacado needed every bit of it — and then some — to send itself back to Austin.

The third-ranked Matadors flirted with disaster in Saturday’s Region I-3A championship game against Wichita Falls Hirschi, falling behind late in regulation and nearly coughing up their chance to tie the game as the final seconds ticked off. But an apparent traveling violation wasn’t called against Clarence Willard, who made a game-tying layup as the fourth quarter expired, and then Estacado outlasted the Huskies for a 67-64, overtime victory at United Spirit Arena.

“Wow,” said Estacado head coach Tony Wagner, whose Matadors will make back-to-back trips to the UIL state tournament for the first time in program history. “We’ve got kids that just fight, and they don’t have any quit in them.”

Estacado's Clarence Willard, front, and Barry Johnson celebrate Willard's buzzer-beating basket against Wichita Falls Hirschi, sending the regional championship game into overtime, where the Matadors won, 67-64. (John A. Bowersmith/Avalanche-Journal)

Estacado's Clarence Willard drives to the basket against Hirschi's Marcus Foster Saturday at United Spirit Arena during the Region 1 3A championship. Estacado beat Hirschi 67-64 in overtime to advance to the state tournament in Austin. (John A. Bowersmith/Lubbock Avalanche-Journal)

Neither do the No. 17 Huskies (24-12), who beat the Matadors on Dec. 18 and nearly ended their season on Saturday. Free throws by Darius Thornton and Marcus Foster gave Hirschi a two-point lead with only six seconds remaining in regulation, its first lead since midway through the third quarter.

Willard then drove down the left side of the lane and banked in a short shot off the glass at the buzzer, but on his way to the hoop, he almost lost his footing and took at least one extra step before releasing the ball. The officials never blew a whistle, though, and Estacado had new life.

“I thought that he got away with one,” Wagner said with a smile.

The Matadors (32-4) never trailed in overtime, when Kevin Wagner scored six of their seven points. His first two came on an alley-oop pass from Willard, and then Wagner made four free throws in the final 25 seconds to seal the win.

Sinking the clutch foul shots provided some redemption for the 5-foot-8 junior point guard, who missed two when Estacado trailed by one point with 14 seconds left in the fourth quarter. In last year’s state-championship game against Dallas Madison, which the Matadors lost in overtime, Wagner missed a free throw that would have given them the lead late in the fourth period.

“It was a little depressing,” he said of Saturday’s misses. “But when (Willard) scored the basket, I knew I just had to redeem myself in overtime so we could come out with the victory.”

Wagner, who scored only seven points in Estacado’s loss to Hirschi earlier this season, had eight by the midway mark of the first quarter. He poured in 13 of his game-high 23 points in the first half, leading the Matadors to a 29-28 lead at the break.

The second half belonged to Willard, who was named most valuable player of the regional tournament. The 6-2 junior scored all 20 of his points after halftime, including 10 of Estacado’s 14 points in the third quarter, and he drained a trio of 3-pointers to match Wagner’s feat in the first half.

“I went in the locker room (at halftime), and I knew that I wasn’t doing so good,” Willard said. “Coach held me back and he talked to me, saying he needed me to come out and score some buckets to make everything happen. I didn’t want to lose.”

Wagner and Willard helped Estacado overcome an inspired performance by Hirschi, which has 12 seniors on its roster. One of those seniors, 6-7 center Richard Ross, dominated the paint to the tune of 19 points, 14 rebounds and seven blocked shots.

Thornton, another senior, had 14 points and a game-high seven assists, and Foster might have been the Huskies’ most dangerous weapon. The 6-0 freshman scored 13 points and nailed four 3-pointers, including two in the fourth quarter, and his last trey tied the game with 58 seconds left in regulation.

“Same song, second verse with Rookie. He’s done it all year,” said Hirschi head coach Donald Hedge, referring to Foster by his nickname. “When he comes off the bench and hits big shots like that, that doesn’t surprise me at all. As a matter of fact, it surprises me when he doesn’t hit big shots.”

Hedge and his players were clearly dejected after the loss, but the Huskies’ coach was gracious in defeat. He refused to blame the no-call on Willard at the end of the fourth quarter, and he didn’t criticize his players for an 11-of-24 showing from the free-throw line.

He just congratulated the Matadors and wished them well in Austin, telling Kevin Wagner to “go bring it back.”

Wagner, Willard and the rest of the Matadors are determined to do just that, especially after coming so close to a championship a year ago. Estacado pushed top-ranked Madison to the brink before losing 68-66 in overtime.

“We’ve got to come out with a victory this time,” Kevin Wagner said. “We’re going to go down there and finish up our business and come back with a trophy.”

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CLASS 3A REGION I FINAL
at United Spirit Arena
ESTACADO 67, WICHITA FALLS HIRSCHI 64, OT
ESTACADO — Johnson 2 0-0 5, Wagner 7 6-10 23, Russell 3 1-2 7, Lewis 2 0-2 4, Robinson 0 0-0 0, Willard 7 3-4 20, Hunter 4 0-0 8. Totals 25 10-18 67.
HIRSCHI — Ferguson 2 0-0 4, Duren 0 0-0 0, Thornton 5 4-6 14, Foster 4 1-2 13, Combs 0 0-0 0, Ross 9 1-1 19, Edwards 1 2-3 4, Scroggins 2 3-8 8, Culpepper 1 0-4 2, Lee 0 0-0 0. Totals 24 11-24 64.
Estacado 20 9 14 17 7 — 67
Hirschi 13 15 10 22 4 — 64
3-point goals: Estacado 7 (Wagner 3, Willard 3, Johnson), Hirschi 5 (Foster 5, Scroggins). Total fouls: Estacado 18, Hirschi 13. Fouled out: Estacado, Hunter. Technical fouls: none. Records: Estacado 32-4, Hirschi 24-12.