Freeman fires away in first-round win

YAKIMA – It comes down to simple arithmetic: If you’re not shooting well, shoot often.

The Freeman Scotties launched 76 shots in their State 1A boys basketball tournament opener with Seattle Academy, sinking the Cardinals under a 70-32 barrage in the 9 p.m. finale Wednesday.

The Scotties (22-2) shot just less than 38 percent, connecting on 24 of 64 field-goal attempts and 2 of 12 from 3-point range. In total, Freeman fired 31 more shots than its opponent.

“These kids have been here enough they know what to expect,” Freeman coach Mike Thacker said. “Our goal was to put up 70 shots and we accomplished that.”

Where the Scotties imposed their will against Seattle Academy was on the boards and on defense.

Freeman forced 29 turnovers and, with 20 steals, committed grand larceny in the passing lanes and turned its transition game into an express checkout. Meanwhile, the Scotties pulled down 48 rebounds, 19 more than the Cardinals.

Thacker was pleased with the effort and to finally get a game under his team’s belt.

“It’s tough playing that late game that first day,” Thacker said. “You spend all day thinking about the game and you finally get there to play and find out that you’re tired from a day of nervous energy.

“We had our walk-through today and we all came down to watch the girls play this afternoon. I was afraid we were going to turn into tour guides before we had a chance to play. I think we’ll be fine now.”

The wait didn’t slow the Scotties’ start. Freeman’s defense shut down Seattle Academy for the entire first half, building a 19-7 lead after one quarter and blanking the Cardinals for the first 6 minutes of the second quarter.

Malcolm Soelberg finished with 18 points to lead all scorers for Freeman, despite shooting just 7 of 20 from the floor.

Shane Lewis grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds and freshman DeAngelo Casto came off the bench to score nine points, grab 10 boards and block three shots.

“You can tell that DeAngelo is ready to step up and contribute even more,” Thacker said. “I was a little concerned about him coming in. I was afraid the bright lights and the big dome were going to rattle him, but it didn’t seem to bother him at all. He stepped up and played really well.”

Kevin Hatch led the Scotties with five steals.

“I think our guys just want to put all the distractions aside and go out there and get it done,” Thacker said. “This is the fourth state tournament for Dan Sanders, the third for Malcolm and Jason Bailey, and I think the third for Kevin Hatch.”

La Conner 53, Colfax 49 (2OTs)

The only team in the tournament without a winning record came oh-so-close to reaching the quarterfinals.

Colfax (9-16) pushed La Conner to double overtime and led 49-47 in the final minute.

But with their two leading scorers, Brian Danaher and Erik Wick, on the bench with five fouls apiece, the Bulldogs were unable to answer in the closing seconds.

“We came into this game thinking we could win it,” Colfax coach Phil Hergert said. “We came close and I think we converted a few fans here today.”