It was hailing threepointers at the Bob Gair boys' basketball Classic on Saturday.
Two dozen treys rained down on the Pearson gym in the boys' championship final, but it was a last-second bucket on a breakaway by Masood Walli that proved the difference in the New Westminster Hyacks 86-84 victory over North Delta.
Leading 66-56 heading into the final quarter, New West was forced to come back in the final minute of play after North Delta took a one-point lead on the team's seventh bomb of the period.
Manvir Gandham tied the contest, making the second of a pair of free throws, and giving the ball back to North Delta.
Gandham stole the ball back on defence and sent Walli in for a breakaway layup to give the Hyacks the win.
Jordan Zeer led all Hyacks with 18 points, while Walli chipped in with 17. Hasrit Sidhu added 12 points for the winners.
Both teams poured in 12 threes apiece, 10 of those coming for New Westminster in the opening first half.
"We just needed to stick together and keep our heads together," said Walli about North Delta's fourth-quarter comeback. "They're a good team, but our chemistry was better."
Walli led the Hyacks with 19 points, including 12 in the third quarter, in a 75-45 win over West Vancouver in the opening game of the Bob Gair tourney.
Gandham was the high scorer for the Gair hosts in a 94-54 win over Port Moody in the tournament semifinal.
New Westminster's next game will be a test to see how the Hyacks stack up against a top-10 contender.
The Hyacks are scheduled to play current No. 3 Pitt Meadows on Jan. 3, just one week before league play commences with a game against Alpha Secondary.
"A lot of teams think we're not good because of our size. But we make up for it by how hard we play," said Walli.
