Taylor Olson nearly wrote a storybook ending for the Jefferson High School basketball team Friday night.

Unfortunately for Olson and the J-Hawks, Dondre Alexander had an eraser and rewrote the script.

Alexander scored the go-ahead basket for top-ranked Iowa City West and blocked Olson's shot at the buzzer as the Trojans escaped with a 50-49 victory at the Jefferson gym.

The J-Hawks rallied from a 16-point deficit, held the high-powered Trojans to just two points in the fourth quarter and gave themselves a chance to win at the end.

Olson had the ball in his hands as the final seconds ticked away with Iowa City West clinging to its one-point lead. Jefferson Coach Stu Ordman did not call a timeout, trusting his senior point guard to make the right decision.

"He has to make that decision," said Ordman.

"We practice this," said Olson, who relished the opportunity.

Olson bided his time, then made his move to the basket with about five seconds left. He nudged past Alexander and thought he could get all the way to the basket for the game-winning shot.

"I saw the basket, I thought I was wide open, but I don't know, it didn't go our way this time," he said.

Olson got close to the bucket and went up for the shot. Alexander, a strong defender, recovered and got a piece of the ball.

"Yeah, it was a block. A clean block," said Alexander.

"Yeah, he did get a piece of the ball," Olson confirmed.

The buzzer sounded. Ordman grimaced, then quickly joined the handshake line. The big upset had slipped away.

Iowa City West (9-0, 6-0) jumped to a 33-17 lead at halftime and appeared headed for an easy victory, but the eighth-ranked J-Hawks (7-2, 3-2) had other ideas.

"A little voice modulation there at halftime," said Ordman. "We really challenged our guys."

Ordman put 5-foot-9 guard Creighton Robinson in the starting lineup for the second half in place of 6-foot-4 center Justin Underwood, making the J-Hawks even smaller than usual but even quicker, presenting matchup problems for the bigger Trojans.

Robinson pulled Jefferson within 48-47 with a 3-pointer, then gave the J-Hawks their only lead of the night at 49-48 with a sensational reverse layup, high off the glass with English.

"Coach said if I have a clean look, take it," said Robinson, who made three 3-pointers and finished with 15 points.

"I thought he played with a lot of heart," said Ordman. "He played inspired basketball. He actually brought us back in the game."

Alexander, playing with a sore right hand, made a strong inside move and gave Iowa City West a 50-49 edge with the visitor's only basket of the fourth quarter with 1:30 remaining.

Jefferson spread the court and began killing time. The J-Hawks briefly lost possession, but the Trojans gave it right back with 39 seconds left in front of the J-Hawk bench.

Some teams would milk the clock and call a timeout with 10 or 12 seconds left to design a final play, but Ordman trusted Olson with the outcome in his hands.

"We're down one (point), we might as well take the last shot and see what happens," said Ordman. "Our leading scorer had the ball with a good look at the basket. A pretty good play."

Olson had the option of passing to an open teammate, but he'd made terrific moves to the basket all night and had a chance to win the game on his own.

"I got a clear line to the basket, but Dondre recovered and then he got a piece of the ball," he said.

Alexander came away with the loose ball and there was no time for anything else to happen as the game ended.

"We didn't out-play them," said Iowa City West Coach Steve Bergman. "We had a couple of stretches where we shot it really well. That was enough to get us over the hump."

Alexander fell early in the game and hurt his right hand, costing him a few minutes of playing time. He also got into mild foul trouble and missed a few more minutes, but he was around at the end when it mattered to avoid the upset.

"We're No. 1, so everyone is going to come out and play their 'A' game, play their best game against us," he said.

Ordman liked his team's patience and shot selection in the second half, compared to what transpired in the first 16 minutes. The J-Hawks also played much better defense in the second half.

"We were tentative and seemed kind of scared in the first part of the game," said Olson. "I think that was the problem."

Jefferson began the week with a spotless 7-0 record, but suffered a 61-46 loss at No. 3 Dubuque Senior Tuesday night and finished the week with a one-point groaner against the No. 1 team in the state.

"I'm hoping this inspires the guys," said Ordman. "If we put four quarters together instead of two, we might win another game."

Olson led Jefferson with a game-high 19 points. Alexander finished with 13 points. Austin Swank gave the Trojans a big lift off the bench with three 3-pointers and 11 points.

Only four J-Hawks scored in the ballgame. Tyler Hemphill netted eight points and Alec Saunders had seven.

IOWA CITY WEST (50): Morgan 2 0-0 5, Lohaus 4 0-0 9, Alexander 6 0-0 13, Gylten 3 1-2 8, Batie-Gaddy 2 0-0 4, Bryant 0 0-0 0, Swank 4 0-0 11, Stewart 0 0-0 0, Smith 0 0-0 0. Totals 21 1-2 50.

JEFFERSON (49): Kramer 0 0-0 0, T. Olson 6 7-8 19, Saunders 2 2-4 7, Hemphill 4 0-2 8, Underwood 0 0-0 0, Robinson 6 0-0 15, Kearney 0 0-0 0, J. Olson 0 0-0 0, Goodell 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 9-14 49.

Halftime - Iowa City West 33, Jefferson 17. 3-point goals - Iowa City West 7 (Swank 3, Morgan 1, Lohaus 1, Alexander 1, Gylten 1), Jefferson 4 (Robinson 3, Saunders 1).