ARLINGTON — Marysville Pilchuck versus Arlington is quickly becoming must-see basketball.
Less than three weeks after the teams’ first contest ended in a buzzer-beater that wound up on SportsCenter, the Eagles and Tomahawks again went down to the wire.
On Tuesday night, Marysville Pilchuck prevailed over Arlington for the second time this season with a 64-59 Wesco 3A North win at Arlington High School that needed overtime to crown a winner.
“Just another day at the office for the Arlington and Pilchuck guys. Wow,” said Marysville Pilchuck head coach Bary Gould. “… They battled and so did we. It’s a fun high school basketball game. If you’re a fan, I think that’s really cool. For me, I’m getting gray hairs, balding and having a heart attack.”
Michael Painter scored 29 points for Marysville Pilchuck (5-1 league, 12-4 overall), including nine in the fourth quarter as the Tomahawks held off a surging Arlington team. The Eagles, who trailed by as many as 10 in the final period, rallied late thanks to a 3-pointer and a pair of free throws by Nathan Aune with 21 seconds remaining in the game to tie the score at 55.
Aune got another shot off before the final buzzer sounded but Marysville Pilchuck’s Nate Heckendorf blocked the shot to send the game to overtime.
“We just talked about playing fearless,” Painter said. “We had a big crowd — families, friends on either side — at first we came out with a little anxiety. We were thinking a little too much. I was thinking too much.”
The overtime period belonged to the Tomahawks. Josh Bevan netted a jumper and a 3-pointer from NBA distance, Painter notched a bucket and Heckendorf added a score to help Marysville Pilchuck pull away.
“These guys have known each other forever, so it’s always going to be a good battle,” said Arlington head coach Nick Brown. “… Our guys, they’re going to bring a little extra for (MP) and they did.”
Bevan finished with 15 points and four steals for Marysville Pilchuck. Heckendorf added 14 rebounds and five blocks, including another as overtime wound down.
“Painter was incredible, (Bevan) was huge in the overtime — it’s a complete team effort,” Gould said. “I could go down the line.”
It was a big win for Painter, a sophomore two years ago on a Marysville Pilchuck squad that went 1-19. Tuesday night was the first victory of Painter’s career in the Arlington gymnasium.
“It’s huge,” Painter said. “Personally, I’ve never won at Arlington before in my four years at MP. This is a lot of firsts for me. It’s just great for us to experience that. As a team it’s good for us to go through adversity and then really come back at the end and finish the game.”
“Michael played really well tonight,” Brown said. “He really had a good game and gave us some problems.”
Aune led the way for Arlington (3-3, 11-5) with 22 points and 12 rebounds. He scored all seven of the Eagles’ third-quarter points and added nine in the fourth quarter to help Arlington force overtime.
Tylor Morton scored 11 points and grabbed five rebounds and Connor Bovard and Drew Bryson added eight points apiece for the Eagles.
“I thought we did a good job on our end and we had some players step up and make some big plays,” Brown said. “They had a 10-point lead with four minutes to go and I still wasn’t worried about it. I felt like our guys were just getting going.
“… I couldn’t be more proud of my guys tonight. They played hard and we came back and we fought until the end, like we always do.”
Arlington led a back-and-forth first half 27-21 at halftime before Marysville Pilchuck outscored the Eagles 18-7 in the third quarter. The Eagles’ fourth-quarter run helped them get the game to overtime in a contest that rivaled the teams’ thrilling 54-53 game on Jan. 9, where the Tomahawks were also victorious.
“Obviously, they came out and were excited and wanted some revenge,” Gould said. “They played one heck of a first half and we had a good third quarter to get back the lead. But man, they weren’t going anywhere were they?”
It’s possible Arlington and Marysville Pilchuck could meet up for Round 3 in February’s 3A District 1 tournament, with a regional berth on the line.
A third meeting appears to be OK with both squads.
“Arlington, that’s a team of competitors,” Painter said. “They’re nice guys, they all work hard. That’s what happens when you put two teams together that are just competitive.”
At Arlington H.S.
Marysville Pilchuck 12 9 18 16 9 —64
Arlington 11 16 7 21 4 —59
Marysville Pilchuck—Bryce Juneau 6, Bryce Vitcovich 5, Josh Bevan 15, Michael Painter 29, Cole Grinde 5, Zach Verge 2, Aaron Herrera 0, Nate Heckendorf 2. Arlington—Tylor Morton 11, Donavan Sellgren 3, Aaron Carlson 0, Nathan Aune 22, Cole Kingsberry 0, Drew Bryson 8, Connor Bovard 8, Brennon Wiersma 0, Jeremy Bishop7. 3-point goals—Bevan 3, Morton 1, Aune 1, Bryson 2. Records—Marysville Pilchuck 5-1 league, 12-4 overall. Arlington 3-3, 11-5.
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