TACOMA — North Kitsap has been riding high all season long, but has gotten a wake-up call over the past few games.
After falling to Lindbergh in the district championship, the Vikings are now facing an early elimination next week after a loss to No. 6 Tumwater at regionals on Saturday.
North Kitsap will start its run at the Yakima SunDome in a loser-out game at 3:45 p.m. Wednesday against Selah.
The team once again struggled from the floor at regionals, especially from the three-point line where they went 1-for-17 after going 1-for-16 against Lindbergh. The combination of tough inside drives combined with the ability to shoot from the outside has been a hallmark for the Vikings this year. And a few triples could have made the difference in the 60-55 loss to Tumwater.
“We just didn’t get it done,” said sophomore Jonas La Tour, who scored a game-high 21 points.
La Tour hit the only 3-pointer of the game for North Kitsap, and it was a big one as it tied the contest at 53 in the fourth quarter. After Tumwater answered, Shaa Humphrey muscled his way to the basket for a putback to pull his team back within one. But they failed to score over the final 1:35 as the Thunderbirds put away the game on free throws.
“Right now it hurts, definitely,” said head coach Scott Orness. “But we’ll be moving forward tomorrow and looking forward to our opportunities when we get up there.”
It was a close affair all the way through as North Kitsap led by one point after the first quarter and then Tumwater led by one at halftime. The Vikings struggled to stop 6-foot-3 guard Ethan Dillon and 6-foot-2 Camden Oram as both players had plenty of nice finishes at the rim with an array of power moves and fadeaway hooks.
Tumwater was also able to hit six timely 3-pointers and played strong defense as they contested shots well against a quick-moving North Kitsap team.
“No one is just going to lay down for us,” Orness said.
The loss means the Vikings will have to get started at Yakima a day early. A win would have given them a first-round bye and a Thursday game against either Lakewood or Lindbergh. Now they’ve got Selah, who will essentially be playing in their backyard at the SunDome, with White River waiting in the next round, which took them to overtime in the district tournament.
“We’re bummed out,” La Tour said. “But we’ve got Wednesday to prove ourselves.”
Tumwater 60, North Kitsap 55
TW 13 14 16 17 — 60
NK 14 12 15 14 — 55
Tumwater (60) — Dillon 19, Oram 14, Gaither 6, Lewis 6, Fields 5, Peterson 5, Clay 3, Otton 2.
North Kitsap (55) — La Tour 21, Humphrey 13, McMillian 9, Olmsted 8, Olmstead 4.
Central Kitsap upsets Shorecrest to advance to the Tacoma Dome
ISSAQUAH — The amazing run continues for Central Kitsap as they upset No. 11 Shorecrest in the regional round of the state tournament with a 75-65 victory.
Colby White had the game of his career, scoring 35 points and leading his team to a victory. Central Kitsap built an eight-point margin by halftime and furthered it to 13 after three quarters of play. White already had 25 points by the end of the third quarter, but he continued to roll offensively in the fourth.
Ethan Searer added 14 points for Central Kitsap and Maurice Green chipped in 12.
The Cougars take on No. 3 Marysville-Pilchuk at 9 a.m. Wednesday at the Tacoma Dome.
Central Kitsap 75, Shorecrest 65
CK 15 17 16 27 — 75
SC 12 12 11 30 — 65
Central Kitsap (75) — White 35, Searer 14, Green 12, Massey 7, LaBow 5, Johnson 2.
Chief Kitsap Academy falls to Garfield-Palouse on the road at regionals
A nice season for a young Bears team came to an end Saturday at regionals in a 79-51 loss to a very good No. 11 Garfield-Palouse team.
Garfield-Palouse jumped out to a 21-9 lead after the first quarter, but Chief Kitsap Academy worked its way back to within five thanks to Christian Wion-Rathbun’s back-to-back 3-pointers and a couple of nice drives to the hoop from Mateo Sipai. But the Bears weren’t ultimately able to hang with their opponent.
Josh Bagley led Chief Kitsap with 13 points, followed by Topher Old Coyote with 12, Wion-Rathbun with nine and Sipai with seven.
The Bears finished with a 13-7 record.
