Mead gets in gear, tops Mt. Spokane

Consistency has been elusive for Mead boys basketball this year, coach Glenn Williams likening the season to a mechanic tinkering with an automobile to try and keep it operating smoothly.

The Panthers struggled at home against Mt. Spokane for the better part of three quarters, but then hit on all cylinders for the final 10 minutes of their 50-34 victory.

“They were killing us on the boards, it was 20-to-9 the first half and we were shooting 24 percent,” said Williams. “But I told the kids at halftime we must doing something right because we were only down two points.”

They trailed 26-22 when Matt Dorr hit a 3-point basket with 2:05 left in the third quarter.

Then Jeremy Brett’s teammates joined him in gathering rebounds, the Panther full-court press flustered the taller and burlier Wildcats, and they finished off the game with a 28-8 flourish that added further drama to the Greater Spokane League as the season winds down.

Seven teams, including four in Class 4A — Central Valley (12-7 overall), Mead (9-10), Mt. Spokane (9-10) and Shadle Park (8-11) — are tied at 6-6 in league, with Tuesday’s games remaining. One of the four will not qualify for district and a playoff is likely.

“We didn’t even talk about that,” said Williams. “We never talked about needing to win, we needed to have constancy of effort and they gave that effort tonight.”

Early in the game, however, neither team could get a handle on tempo, particularly the Panthers who hurried shots after leading 9-4 and let Mt. Spokane dictate a slow pace.

The work inside of Curtis Justice and Edwin Miller, helped the Wildcats lead 15-13 at half. But when Dorr hit his second basket in nine attempts for that 26-22 lead, it was Mead that gained inspiration.

Zach Nichols hit his second 3-point basket of the quarter and added two more baskets for 14 total points as the Panthers took a 34-28 lead.

Then Nick Harter hit a 3-pointer and the momentum was all Mead’s. Lucas Ashe, who also finished with 14 points, had seven in the final quarter.

“We cannot start games, we’ve been having that trouble all year,” said Nichols. “But we knew this was do or die so we came out ready to play.”

Williams said he liked Mead’s poise in the fourth quarter.

“The kids did a great job of getting the game into the tempo we liked,” he said.

“Once they started getting that going the lid came off the basket and they had a lot of fun out there.”

Ferris 66, Shadle Park 63

The Saxons (16-3, 10-2) clinched a tie for first place with their hard-fought victory at Shadle.

Josh Landsverk scored 16 of his 18 points in the first half as the Highlanders took a basket lead they nursed through three quarters. But clutch free-throw shooting by Ryan Shelby and Jon Clift enabled Ferris to rally.

West Valley 60, CV 46

The Eagles (16-3, 9-3) came up huge defensively, taking six charging fouls and Tyler Hobbs did the work offensively with 22 points and eight rebounds.

The Eagles are the top district seed among 3A teams with the three others tied at 6-6.

Gonzaga Prep 60, Clarkston 47

The Bullpups (13-6, 9-3) tied University and WV for second by rallying from a first-quarter deficit at Clarkston (9-10, 6-6). Jake Sayman had a season-high 19 points.

North Central 73, LC 52

A 24-4 first-quarter advantage was more than enough for the host Indians (9-10, 6-6) against the Tigers (5-13, 3-9). Damal Neil, (20 points, seven rebounds) and Eric Beal (19 points, eight rebounds) led NC.

Cheney 62, Rogers 47

The Blackhawks (10-9, 6-6) played a diamond-and-one defense on league scoring leader Scotty Livengood, but he still hit all six shots that he took to score 17 points. Derek Miller led all scorers with 23 for Cheney.