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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

State 1B boys: Almira/Coulee-Hartline advances past league foe Odessa-Harrington

Correspondent

Defense, the adage goes, wins games and Almira/Coulee-Hartline was a case in point.

Yes, Odessa-Harrington super frosh Ryan Moffet got his points – 24 to be exact. But those were more than half the Titans total and he had to work against hard-nosed defenders coupled with radar tracking rebounders by Almira/Coulee-Hartline that proved too much.

The Warriors earned a 51-46 triumph that sends them into a State 1B boys basketball semifinal game against 23-3 Lummi Nation on Friday at 7:15 p.m. at the Spokane Arena.

Odessa-Harrington drops into the consolation bracket against Muckleshoot Tribal at 12:15 p.m.

As much as Moffet scored, he worked to exhaustion facing ACH’s hounding. He took 21 shots and made one-third of them – albeit 15 of those points came from outside the arc. But for the most part Moffet was denied the baseline and he struggled in traffic.

Meanwhile, the Warriors’ Payton Nielson, a 6-foot-4 leaper, prevented second shots while hauling down 21 rebounds. His offensive work around the rim produced 15 points as well.

He was particularly tough in the first half when he scored nine points, backing up Charles Hunt who scored 12 points before intermission.

“I thought we played good defense tonight,” ACH coach Graham Grindy said. “We attacked more instead of settling for 3-pointers. Peyton, he’s great down there and big for offense and defense.”

The Warriors fell behind early on Moffet’s four-point play that opened game scoring. But they rallied quickly as Hunt banged down two 3-pointers and Gage Burchill scored for an 8-4 lead.

The Titans tied the game before Neilson ran off six points for a 17-11 lead, and ACH never trailed again. The duo had combined for 21 of the team’s 27 halftime points.

The second half belonged to Isaak as he and Moffet squared off head-to-head. The Warriors sophomore scored 10 of his 12 points in the second half. Moffet countered with a dozen.

But no other Titan teammate scored more than six points.

“I have a little bit of length on him which helps out,” Isaak said of facing Moffet on defense. “But we’ve played them four times now and know what they’re doing. Watch the screen coming and keep a hand in his face. He’s an awesome basketball player and he’s just a freshman so he’s got many years to come.”

You always have to be disciplined, Grindy said. “I felt tonight we got a little bit out of position. You just have to guard him tight when he’s away from the ball. I wanted Isaak in his face.”

Isaak pointed out that tonight’s game against Lummi is a reunion. The two met in last fall’s football playoffs.

“I have starters who didn’t play hardly at all last year,” Grindy said. “I hope today we’ve acclimated. I don’t say we snuck away with a win, but we (can) do a better job offensively and can’t give up second chance rebounds.”