West Valley dominates Mt. Spokane
By any basketball yardstick, West Valley was thoroughly dominant during its 71-33 boys victory over previously undefeated Mt. Spokane on Tuesday night.
“They beat us in every facet of the game,” said interim coach Dan Smith. “Their post players beat us, they shot well from the three, they pressured us – we had a hard time with them tonight.”
One statistic defined the contest that left both teams with 3-1 records. The Eagles had a stunning 55-19 rebound advantage.
“That was our biggest problem against North Central,” said guard Greg Bradley, recounting last Friday’s overtime loss to the Indians. “No one was rebounding. There was a little incentive to rebound this game.”
Only seven seconds were gone when E.J. Richardson scored the first of his game-high 16 points. The next four points, by Tyler Hobbs off offensive rebounds, set the tone.
WV led 19-6 with 2:30 to play in the first quarter. After Mt. Spokane cut the deficit to seven points, the Eagles went on a 17-point tear to turn the game into a rout.
Ahead 42-17 at halftime, West Valley had made half its shots from the field, including five 3-point baskets, and had an 11-2 advantage on the offensive boards. Much of the damage was done by Hobbs and Richardson who combined for 23 points and 15 rebounds.
Relentless full-court and half-court defense caused few turnovers, but prevented the Wildcats from running their offense.
Matt Dorr, who was averaging 20.7 points per game, did not score a basket until 47 seconds remained in the first half and finished with six points.
The only Mt. Spokane players with any effect were speedy point guard Tim Roffler and sophomore post Ryan Selland.
West Valley, meanwhile, got 13 rebounds, 13 points and six assists from Hobbs, 14 points from Bradley and 10 points from reserve post Ryan Town on a night when all nine players scored.
“The great thing about this team is the guys are good about making adjustments. They don’t have two bad performances,” said WV coach Jamie Nilles. “I thought we pursued a lot of loose balls, and obviously rebounded. You do those things and you get some easy looks at the other end.”
Outworked by NC the week before, WV players said they were determined not to let that happen against Mt. Spokane.
“When they’re on they’re pretty tough,” said Smith, coaching the Wildcats while Bill Ayers recovers from a virus that left him with a severe bout of vertigo and deafness in one ear. “There’s a reason why WV was picked No. 1. We found out tonight.”
Central Valley 57, Gonzaga 51
The third quarter was the difference as the host Bears (4-1) outscored the Bullpups (2-2) 17-10. Kevin Cameron scored a career-high 23 points, including 4 for 5 from beyond the 3-point arc..
Ferris 72, Mead 50
The teams combined for 60 fourth-quarter points divided evenly between them. But by then the Saxons (5-0) had done their damage with three quarters of stifling defense against the visiting Panthers (1-4). Sophomore Shawn Stockton had a career-high 17 points, while Brian Hallett had a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds.
Rogers 46, University 34
The host Pirates (3-2) outscored the cold-shooting Titans (1-4) 18-8 in the third quarter. Scotty Livengood scored eight points, the first time he’d been held under double figures, but Andrew Durant (13 points) and Trevonne Garry (12) took up the scoring slack. Garry added nine rebounds and four blocks.
East Valley 39, Cheney 37
The Knights (2-2) made up for a scoreless second quarter by going on a 19-8 third-quarter tear and Austin Wardsworth made a layup to beat the visiting Blackhawks (1-4) with three seconds remaining. Dylan Sattin scored 10 of his 16 points in that third-quarter run.
North Central 93, Clarkston 55
The Indians (4-1) ran wild in Clarkston. They led 27-11 after a quarter and had 50 points by half. Damal Neil, 28 points, became the third player that the Bantams (1-3) could not defend against.
Shadle Park 64, Lewis and Clark 59
Led by freshman Anthony Brown, the visiting Highlanders (3-2) rallied in the second quarter from a seven-point deficit and the resultant halftime lead held up at LC (1-5). Brown scored a career-high 21 points to lead four Shadle players in double figures.