State basketball preview: Led by No. 1 Mead girls, seven Greater Spokane League teams still alive

All season long, the Mead girls basketball team has been ranked near the top of both the state media poll and the RPI system the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association uses as one of the tools to seed the state tournament.

But they never reached No. 1 – until it actually mattered.

Mead was a close No. 2 much of the season to Garfield (17-0), but when the seeds to the state tournaments were announced last weekend, the Panthers (23-0) sat atop the list as the No. 1 seed in the girls 3A bracket.

Still, it didn’t impress Mead coach Quantae Anderson. Much, anyway.

“We play hard, right?” Anderson said Saturday. “Everyone knows when they’re gonna play against us, we’re gonna play as hard as we can for as long as we can. And we’re not worried about what people think.”

The Panthers are led by senior guard Olivia Moore, sophomore guard Teryn Gardner and senior post Alicia Suggs. But they play nine deep and are relentless with pressure defense.

“I mean, rankings aren’t everything,” Moore said. “We just kind of have to come out and play our game, no matter who we’re playing. But I am looking forward to getting over to Tacoma.

“We want to get recognition and stuff, but ultimately it’s (more about) what we believe in, and where we can go. As long as we trust each other and believe in each other, we know we can go far.”

Folks across the state – coaches, players, media – know Mead will play with as much intensity as anyone. The knock, especially from those that might not have seen the Panthers play, is if they can “play fast” and score enough.

That’s despite Mead registering a 20-point quarter in 18 of its 23 games this season and its closest margin of victory coming in a 12-point win over Lewis and Clark

In their protected regional game against eighth-seeded Lincoln on Saturday, the Panthers outscored the Abes 32-3 in the second quarter en route to a 76-30 win – the largest margin of victory in the tournament in any classification.

“We got a lot of a lot of buckets in transition, and we were able to kick the ball out to open shooters after we started penetrating,” Anderson said. “You throw all that in there, you’re going to get open shots and we hit some good shots.”

The Panthers await their chance to prove it on the big stage. They will face the winner of Wednesday’s first-round loser-out between No. 7 Stanwood and No. 10 Auburn on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. in a quarterfinal.

Boys 4A

(8) Gonzaga Prep (15-8): Beat Kamiakin 57-54 in District 8 championship; lost to No. 1 Mount Si 69-58 in protected regional game; faces No. 9 Federal Way on Wednesday at 9 p.m. The Bullpups, led by recent Oregon State commit Jayden Stevens and junior Jamil Miller, were on a roll at the end of the season and through the district playoffs. Will a setback against Mount Si motivate again? Stevens was a freshman on Anton Watson’s second state title team in 2019 and an injured sophomore on the first-round exit in 2020.

(12) Central Valley (18-7): Beat Richland 60-57 in district third-place game; beat Woodinville 69-66 in overtime in regional loser-out; plays No. 4 Kamiakin in first-round loser-out Wednesday at 7:15 p.m. Record-breaking senior scorer Dylan Darling, headed to Idaho State, seems to get better every game. On Saturday, he totaled 48 points, scoring 29 of CV’s 31 points in the second and third quarters while turning a deficit into an OT season-saver.

3A

(7) Mt. Spokane (21-5): Beat Mead 61-49 in district third-place game; beat No. 2 Auburn 69-58 in protected regional game; faces (9) Mountlake Terrace/(8) Timberline winner in Thursday quarterfinal. The Wildcats fell to Ferris in a district semifinal and rebounded with three straight wins to earn a direct path to the quarters. Junior Maverick Sanders is a streaky scorer and senior Xavier Kamalu-Vargas is a team leader.

(12) Ferris (18-6): Lost to Kennewick 45-43 in district title game; beat No. 13 Arlington 64-45 in regional loser-out; faces No. 4 Rainier Beach in first-round loser-out on Wednesday at 12:15 p.m. The Saxons trailed Arlington 11-4 early. Coach Sean Mallon asked for time and they were a different team out of the huddle, outscoring Arlington 19-4 in the second quarter. Point guard Trayce Atkins has been a leader all-season, off-guard Ray Ray Bergerson is back from injury and wing AJ Newcomb can guard anyone in the state.

2A

(4) Pullman (21-2): Beat West Valley 58-39 in district title game; beat No. 5 Tumwater 61-50 in protected regional; faces (14) Prosser/(6) White River winner in Thursday quarter. The Greyhounds have a lot of ways they can beat you – junior point guard Jaeydn Brown is a high-motor transfer from Montana in the spring season, 6-foot-8 senior post Grayson Hunt has a nice touch around the rim and junior Tanner Barbour is a terrific athlete who can shoot the lights out.

1A

(4) Freeman (21-2): Beat Lakeside 65-51 in district championship; lost to No. 5 Toppenish 61-58 in protected regional; faces No. 12 King’s Way Christian in first-round loser-out Wednesday at 12:15 p.m. The Scotties were crushed by their three-point loss at regional, where they were outscored 22-15 in the fourth quarter. A bounce-back win Wednesday would put them on course for a showdown with No. 3 Life Christian on Thursday.

Girls 2A

(9) West Valley (20-2): Beat Clarkston 52-43 in district title game; beat No. 16 North Kitsap 66-33 in regional loser-out; faces No. 1 Tumwater in first-round loser-out on Wednesday. Talk about a bad draw. First, the Eagles were seeded outside the top eight protected spots despite being No. 7 in the RPI. Then, after dominating their regional loser-out, they find out they’ll have to face the No. 1 seed after the Thunderbirds were upset by No. 8 Burlington-Edison. Sophomore point guard Chloe DeHaro is skilled and tenacious, while seniors Madison Carr, Aliyah Henry and Delani Walker form an experienced nucleus.

1A

(6) Freeman (16-6): Beat Colville 49-44 in overtime in district title game; lost to No. 3 Cashmere 57-23 in protected regional; faces No. 11 King’s in first-round loser-out on Wednesday at 3:45 p.m. What happened against Cashmere? The Scotties hadn’t allowed more than 45 points since a Jan. 4 loss to Lakeland. Jaycee Goldsmith, Maddy Phillips and Sydney McLean trade off as high scorers.

(7) Colville (17-4): Beat Omak 66-51 in District 6/7 crossover; lost to No. 2 Nooksack Valley 71-41 in protected regional; faces No. 15 La Center in first-round loser-out on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. After a stellar season, the Crimson Hawks have lost three of their past five games, including the 30-point decision in regionals. Ashne’a Anderson and Mckenna Reggear are a formidable 1-2 punch when they’re on.