The 2A District Tournament began on Tuesday, with the play-in game, followed by quarterfinals at home sites on Thursday. Again, this year, only the top two teams will advance to regional round.
#8 Sehome (3-12/7-15) took care of the #9 Marysville-Pilchuck Tomahawks (1-9/1-20) 69-54, Tuesday, at Sehome High School. The Mariners now move on to face #1 Lynden (15-0/21-0), Thursday, 7:00pm, at Lynden High School.
It was the Mariners second win of the year over the Tomahawks. The Mariners took a quick first quarter lead and cruised to a 24-point lead in the third quarter, before the Tomahawks caught fire from the outside and scored 13 straight points. But the Mariners righted their ship, and sailed to a comfortable win.
The Mariners got 26 points from junior wing Xavier Kelley, and 15 from sophomore guard Quincy Tanovan. Junior point guard Nolan Wright scored nine points, and contributed mightily to the scoring of Kelley and Tanovan with 11 assists.
Freshman guard Michael Rangel-smathers scored 31 points for the Tomahawks, with 20 coming in the second half.
The Lions defeated the Mariners 63-36 in their regular season matchup.
In that game, 6-2 junior post, Cole Turrell, has some success working the low post against the much taller Lion defenders. The Mariners will need that, plus a lot from floor general, Wright, and his mid-range jumpers.
The Lions made it through the season unscathed, but will have to crank it up a notch, as everyone will give them their best shot with the bullseye on their back gets bigger and bigger. Senior forward Brant Heppner’s strong play and leadership will be on display as he leads this very young team forward through the post-season.
Another quarterfinal games will be at Burlington-Edison High School, where the Tigers (9-6/14-6) host the Bellingham Bayhawks (6-9/8-12), Thursday at 6:00pm.
The Tigers got the best of the Bayhawks last week, 76-48, and play again on the Tigers floor. The Bayhawks will again have to contend with 6-6 junior Logan Heigert and 6-8 senior Timophy Feskov. The two each scored 27 points in that game.
The Bayhawks began the season with a 4-1 record but finished the season with a five-game losing streak. However, in a last second loss to Meridian in their last game, they got 28 points from senior forward Kincade Vanhouten, something that has been missing from their attack lately. The Bayhawks will also need strong performances from 6-3 junior Joe Harward, and he will need accurate 3-point shooting from his teammates to help open the middle.
The Tigers started the season 9-1, then lost four of five games. But they are playing well when it counts, having won five of their last six games, with the loss in overtime at Mount Vernon. It seems like only foul trouble can stop Heigert and Feskov at this point. Look for senior guard Spencer Best to use his hustle and athleticism to compliment the twin towers.
On Thursday at 7:00pm, the #2 seeded Lakewood Cougars (11-4/15-6) will host #7 Archbishop Murphy (3-9/8-12), of the Wesco 3A South.
The Wildcats only play 3A teams in league games, so their record is a little bit misleading. They lost to NWC’s Lynden Christian and Lynden this season but have won three of their last four games. However, those wins were over teams that have records well under .500. The Wildcats will not go down easily. They are a very tough and physical team, and I’m sure will want to take the air out of the ball against the Cougars.
Lakewood was on a five-game win streak before suffering a loss to Lynden Christian on the last day of the season, but the Cougars will be refreshed and ready to take on the Wildcats. They will need to force the issue and play their game to avoid it turning into a slow, physical contest. Getting off to a quick start from the 3-point line would be a big first step.
The #5 Squalicum Storm (7-8/11-9) travel to face the #4 Anacortes Seahawks (8-7/12-8), at 7:00pm on Thursday. This is a rematch of a game on January 24, in which Squalicum posted a 57-52 win at home.
Squalicum started the season 1-5, but moved up a couple notches in the district RPI standings as they finished with five straight wins, and 10 of their last 14. The Seahawks took the opposite path starting 11-2, before losing six of their last seven.
Both teams average 56 points per game and give up an average of 54. In a tournament game, this one could take both teams into the mid-40’s. Both teams have two go-to scorers, so the one that can get that third scorer in the mix will have the advantage.
~ Ted House
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