Boys basketball: By BOB HOUGH, For The Capital BALTIMORE - Down by nine points with less than three minutes left in last night's Catholic League semifinal, the Spalding boys basketball team appeared headed for its first loss in four meetings against St. Frances. The Panthers led the entire game, thanks to nine 3-pointers, and limited Spalding's Rudy Gay to just nine points through three quarters - well below the 29 he averaged against them in three earlier Spalding wins. But Gay and the Cavaliers somehow found a way to claw back. The UConn-bound forward rattled in a 3-pointer from the top of the key with three seconds left to give the Cavaliers a thrilling 70-68 come-from-behind victory in front of an overflow crowd of more than 2,000 at Goucher College. The shot capped a 15-4 run for the Cavaliers over the final 2:37. Spalding moves on to its fifth overall Catholic League title game appearance and its third straight tonight against Mount St. Joseph. The Cavaliers will be seeking their fourth title, while the Gaels (26-5) will be going for their second title in their sixth finals appearance. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. at Goucher. "St. Frances deserved to win the basketball game. I told that to their players and coaches," Spalding coach Mike Glick said. "It's a testament to our kids that they found a way to stay in the game." The Panthers took control from the beginning. Gordon Brown (24 points) scored eight in the first quarter to give St. Frances a seven-point lead after one. The Panthers maintained the lead throughout the most of second quarter and went into halftime with a 27-22 edge. Their tough man-to-man defense limited Gay to just two points on one-of-three shooting in the half. A pair of 3-pointers and eight first-half points by junior guard Marquis Sullivan were the main reason the Cavaliers were still in the game. The Panthers appeared to have things well in hand in the second half, with Darnell Harris (22 points) putting on a shooting exhibition with four 3-pointers in the third quarter and two more in the fourth. His shooting helped the Panthers maintain a comfortable advantage. Gordon Brown got into the act with two 3-pointers and 12 points in the fourth, while Gay was still struggling and went into the final quarter with just nine points. "It was real frustrating in the first half, I just couldn't get the shots I wanted against them," Gay said. "In the second half, it was really the same thing, but I had to keep calm toward the end." St. Frances kept the lead throughout the third quarter, but Spalding's Kevin Galinat hit a pair of 3-pointers in the quarter and the Cavaliers closed the quarter with seven straight points in the final 36 seconds to go into the fourth down by only two. The Panthers quickly re-assumed control early in the fourth and pushed the lead back to 10 points with less than six minutes left in the game. Gay and Galinat hit treys in a 45-second span to cut into the lead, but Gay picked up his fourth foul with 3:34 left in the game and Spalding down 60-55. The Panthers scored the next four points though, and appeared destined for a spot in tonight's final with a 64-55 lead with 2:37 to go. With its opportunity slipping away, Spalding began using a full-court trap defense and went on a quick 7-0 run over the next 40 seconds with baskets by Sullivan and Lawrence Dixon and a 3-pointer from Gay to make it a 64-62 game with 1:50 to play. After the teams traded baskets and turnovers over the next 1:10, the Cavaliers took their first lead of the game on a 3-pointer from Sullivan with 28 seconds left, 67-66. Sullivan scored nine of his 19 points in the quarter. The lead would last a whole 15 seconds though, as Darnell Harris drove the baseline and converted to put St. Frances back ahead, 68-67, with 13 seconds left. After a Spalding timeout, Gay took the ball at the top of the key and let a 3-pointer go that caught iron before falling through for a 70-68 Spalding lead with three seconds left. A desperation shot from just inside half-court from Harris harmlessly fell to the floor and the Cavalier celebration was on. Gay scored 11 points in the quarter and led the Cavaliers with 20 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and three steals. "Actually, I thought it was going off, but it rimmed in," Gay said. "That's the mark of a championship team. Me and my teammates came together and found a way to win the game." Galinat scored 12 points and Jesse Brooks added eight points and six assists for the Cavaliers, who won the game despite leading for a total of 18 seconds in the game. "People forget that we have more than one player. Galinat and Sullivan hit some key outside shots. They did a good job of doubling up Gay early, so our shooters stepped up and hit some big shots," Glick said. Spalding moves on to face Mt. St. Joe tonight in a rematch of last years final, won by the Gaels, 49-48. St. Joe won both meetings with the Cavaliers this year in overtime and have won six straight in the series. "They got the best of us two times this year, we just need to come out harder this time," Gay said. St. Frances (23-8) 19 8 19 23 _68 Spalding (27-6) 12 10 21 27 _70St. Frances (68) Alexander 1 1-2 3, Brown 10(2) 2-4 24, Chase 8 0-0 16, Edwards 1(1) 0-0 3, Harris 8(6) 0-0 22, Allen 0 0-0 0. TOTALS: 28(9) 3-6 68. Spalding (70) Gay 8(3) 1-1 20, Brooks 1 6-6 8, Castleberry 2 0-0 4, Dixon 1 0-0 2, Galinat 4(3) 1-2 12, Jones 2 1-4 5, Sullivan 8(3) 0-0 19. TOTALS: 26(9) 9-13 70. Published March 01, 2004, The Capital, Annapolis, Md. Copyright © 2004 The Capital, Annapolis, Md.