Here are some thoughts that didn’t make the original game stories over the weekend.
I saw six of the NWC’s seven remaining teams play, so let’s start with the one I didn’t see.
The 2A boys #6 seed Lakewood Cougars took on #3 Bremerton, at the Ole’ University of Puget Sound Fieldhouse, in Tacoma. In seeing the game on replay, the UPS Fieldhouse isn’t what it used to be in the 1A state tournament glory days of the 1970’s and 80’s.
New floor, seating, all of that. But brought back memories of my first days going to state tournaments.
Back to the game at hand, the Cougars fell behind the Knights 7-0 and 12-2 and could never recover. Coming off their 50-49 win over Lynden in the District Championship game, the Cougars could not hold up against the defensive pressure of the Knights, the Cinderella story of last year’s state tournament.
The Knights (19-5) are much more balanced this year and won’t have to solely depend on their talented sophomore, Jalen Davis. Davis led four Knights in double-figures with 19 points.
Junior forward Caleb Greenland had a nice game, scoring 20 points for the Cougars, but they could never get into their offensive flow, held to their lowest point total of the season, in their 62-44 loss.
The Cougars (18-7) are not done, however. They will tip off the state tournament in Wednesday’s first game, at 9:00am in the SunDome. They will take on the Columbia River Rapids, who are the #11 seed, with a record of 19-5. The tied Mark Morris for second place in the Greater St. Helens League. The Rapids defeated #14 Renton, 94-63 on Saturday. This will be an elimination game.
On Friday, the #7 seed Meridian boys lost to #2 Royal (24-1), 65-47 in Ellensburg. What amazed me was how well those Knights blended their football prowess with basketball skills. They are a well-balanced team, who plays a strong and aggressive defense. As he has done all year, Trojan senior Talon Jenkins scored 20 points with a defender in his jersey all night.
The Trojans (17-8) will play a first-round elimination game in the SunDome on Wednesday against #15 Overlake (15-9), who defeated Riverside 62-51 on Saturday. Overlake was third in their league and in the District 2 tournament behind Kings and Bear Creek. That game will be at 5:30pm, in the SunDome.
The Pioneers jumped out quickly with Payton Bartl connecting on four 3-pointers in the first quarter for 14 points. She finished with 25. In the second half, the Pioneers steered the offense toward Grace De Hoog on the inside, and she responded with 13 of her 19 points.
The Pioneers will have a tough matchup on Wednesday, in the SunDome, against #8 Naches Valley, who lost a big lead to #1 Lynden Christian on Saturday. The Pioneers and Rangers will play an elimination game at 2:00pm.
Speaking of the Rangers, they built an overwhelming 49-33 lead over the Lyncs with eight minutes to play. But then, they lost sight of freshman guard, Tyra Dykstra. And she made them pay.
Dykstra hit two 3-pointers early in the fourth quarter, which excited the LC crowd, but the deficit was still double-digits. But then she hit a third, with 5:15 left, and suddenly, it was, “game on,” as the Rangers lead was down to six.
Then Danya Dykstra hit one to cut the lead to three, then it was Tyra for the tie at 2:07. The go-ahead three was by Estela Hernandez, her only points of the game. The Lyncs held on after that for a 57-54 win.
The thing about those six fourth-quarter 3-pointers was that none of them touched the rim. They were all dead center in a pressure situation. No matter what the score, their facial expressions never changed, which is a trait of their coach, Brady Bomber.
Tyra’s four threes in the fourth quarter were part of her 19-point game, with 12 points in the fourth quarter and 17 in the second half.
The Lyncs (21-3) will play the winner of #10 Montesano (18-7) and #7 Cashmere (17-8), Thursday at 10:30am. Cashmere took two of three games against Naches this season. They lost to #2 Bellevue Christian, 42-39 on Saturday. Montesano eliminated The Bush School, 47-19.
The Lynden girls are still perfect on the season at 25-0. The top-seeded Lions ran past #8 Bainbridge 58-26 on Saturday.
The Lions played 11 players in the first quarter and held the Spartans to single digit scoring in every quarter.
The defending champions again have all the tools to keep the Gold Ball. They have dominating offensive players yet can keep things balanced. They have a defense that takes most of the shot clock to begin to penetrate. They have lock-down defenders, and oh yes, don’t forget the abundance of big game, state tournament experience.
The Lions await the winner of #10 Port Angeles (18-6) and #7 Columbia River (20-4). Port Angeles beat Cedarcrest, 46-38, while the Rapids lost to Ellensburg, 78-28. Their game will be in the Thursday quarterfinals at 5:30pm.
Back to the boys, where the Lynden Christian Lyncs seemed like someone going for a test drive in a new car. You jump in and give it a go. You see if the car is good enough, or, healthy enough, for you to take home.
The #3 Lyncs (22-2) seemed to pass the new car test on Saturday, as everyone go into the act in their win over #6 Seton Catholic (18-6), 74-57.
Late season injuries to the Dykstra’s, Gannon and Gunnar, seemed to have improved as Gunnar, who had missed several games late in the season, came off the bench. And Gannon, well, seemed like Gannon, scoring 23 points, in a variety of ways.
After a quiet first half that delivered no points, sophomore guard Dawson Hintz, used a simple lay-in to ignite a 19-point second half. He didn’t have many scoring opportunities in the first 16 minutes. But when that happens, or when your shooting is off, just a lay-in or a free throw, can sometimes lead to big things. Once he hit that lay-in, I knew there was more to come. And there certainly was.
The Lyncs are now in Thursday’s quarterfinals against the winner between #5 Kings and #12 Bellevue Christian. The Knights lost to Zillah, 69-44, while the Vikings beat Fort Vancouver 61-48. The Lyncs play in the SunDome at 7:15pm.
And finally, the #1 Lynden Lions (25-1) ran away from the #8 Mark Morris Monarchs (21-5) in the second half, on their way to a 70-50 win. The Lions quarterfinal game will be on Thursday at 10:30am in the SunDome, against either #7 Foster or #10 Prosser.
You always wonder what a loss can do for a previously undefeated team. You don’t know the answer until things play out. It would seem that the Lions used their first loss of the season to their advantage because I think they just put their two best back-to-back games together.
They dominated Archbishop Murphy 73-40, in their winner to state game, then rolled over a very good Monarchs team.
Against the Monarchs, the Lions guards took great care of the ball, allowing the Lion big guys to work the interior. The high-low passing between 6-6 senior Brant Heppner, 6-7 senior Jack Stapleton, and 6-5 junior Ty Jorgenson was exceptional.
And the re-emergence of Jorgenson in the Lions scoring column has been a great benefit. Jorgenson and Stapleton split 22 points down the middle, with Jorgenson’s coming off the bench.
That puts regional games to bed.
I wish all the best to the NWC’s contingent and may they all be playing for trophies on Saturday.
Stay tuned to this site for more, as we arrive at the doorstep of the State Tournament.
Can’t wait for a triple-berry lemonade.
~ Ted House
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