CLINTON — Shaun Walton pulled up and launched a desperate, off-balance 3-pointer from the right wing. The sharpshooter’s magic touch had long since vanished, however, and 90 seconds after his shot missed the rim and bricked off the bottom of the backboard, Warren Central’s season disappeared into thin air as well.

The Vikings spent all night digging out of an early hole and couldn’t do it. Amias Lewis scored 19 points, Galin Smith added 13, and Clinton handed the Vikings a 62-44 season-ending loss in the third-place game of the Division 4-6A tournament on Friday.

“This is the second year in a row we’re going to be the fourth team. That’s the biggest disappointment,” Warren Central coach Bruce Robinson said. “Just to be in this position and be out again is disappointing. It’s not good for the program.”

Walton finished with a game-high 20 points for Warren Central (11-17), 14 of which came in the third quarter. He almost single-handedly rallied the Vikings from a 16-point deficit by converting two four-point plays — a 3-pointer on which he was fouled and hit the ensuing free throw — but the hole was just too deep to climb out of.

After Walton’s fourth 3-pointer of the third quarter — and his second four-point play — cut it to 38-32 with four minutes left in the period, Clinton restored order by making a few baskets. The Arrows took a 44-36 lead into the fourth quarter, pushed it back to double digits on a free throw and a dunk by Smith, and steadily pulled away.

“It’s like shooting in a cavern here. We didn’t get into a rhythm that first half. The few we’d get down low we tried to do things we really don’t have to do to put it in the hole. That hurt,” Robinson said. “I thought we did a good job getting back into it in the third quarter, and then we lost our patience a little bit. We took some shots that were contested.”

Clinton (17-12) built its big lead in the first half through defense and rebounding. It held Warren Central to one shot on most of its possessions in the second quarter and had a 16-2 run that gave it a 15-point lead at halftime.

The margin was 16 early in the third quarter before Walton got hot and hit two 3-pointers and a free throw in a span of 30 seconds to make things interesting.

“They are very good with running a system, and clock management, and getting a high quality shot. Miss or make, we didn’t need to let them have more than one shot,” Clinton coach Clay Norton said.