The Gahanna boys basketball team doesn't have much height, but coach Tony Staib is more than satisfied with all the extras that come with this model.

Making good use of its balance, depth and flexibility, Gahanna fought off Dublin Coffman for a 59-53 victory in a Division I regional semifinal last night in the Ohio Expo Center Coliseum.

"The main reason we're 25-0 is that we're a deep team with multiple kids who can get it done for us," Staib said. "When a player or two is off, one or two of our complementary players almost always picks up the slack."

Coffman cut a 10-point deficit to three in the fourth quarter and seemed to have momentum on its side.

But Lions junior guard Stevie Taylor converted a three-point play on a nifty drive. On Gahanna's next three possessions, Anthony Jackson made a layup in transition, Sam Bott hit a three-pointer and Rob Brandenberg went coast to coast for a basket after a steal. Just like that, the lead ballooned to 52-41 with 3:44 left.

"When Coffman made their big run at us, I knew we needed a boost, so I ripped through the lane and got to the cup," said Taylor, who scored eight of his 17 points in the fourth quarter. "That was the start of a big sequence for us. We know there's going to be runs by both teams in games like this, but it was critical for us to regain our momentum and get the lead back to a manageable margin."

Although the Shamrocks (20-4) spurted again and pulled to 52-48 at the 1:54 mark, Staib responded with an all-guard lineup, and the Lions were able to milk 47 seconds off the clock before Coffman fouled.

Justin McDowell, Brandenburg and Taylor combined to go 6 of 6 at the free-throw line, as Gahanna was able to put away its first regional win.

"I think we did a great job keeping our poise and handling some adversity in the fourth quarter when things got tight," Staib said. "Having multiple ball-handlers allowed us to spread the floor and take a minute or so off the clock late in the ballgame. It's things like that that makes this team so special."

Second-ranked in the final Associated Press state poll, Gahanna will face the winner of a semifinal tonight between top-ranked Northland and Cincinnati Colerain in the Coliseum.

Although's Gahanna's top three players - Taylor, Brandenberg (six points, seven rebounds) and Jackson (12 points, six rebounds) had a below-average game collectively, Bott led a group of four other players who made key contributions.

Bott scored 11 points, including two three-pointers in the opening two minutes, as the Lions jumped out to a 10-2 lead.

Kyle Molock scored 13 points and Conner Viers and Michael Green had 11 apiece for Coffman, which missed several easy shots in the lane while making just 22 of 52 shots from the field.

"I knew we'd have to score to beat this team, and we just had too many missed opportunities," Shamrocks coach Jamey Collins said. "In addition to our shots not falling, either we threw it away or they took it away far too often. It seemed like we were a little uptight, which isn't like us."