Below are previews of the Class 4A and 3A girls Hardwood Classic basketball tournaments in the Tacoma Dome, along with information about the local teams headed to state in other classifications.
The 12-team tournaments begin with Wednesday’s loser-out games, with the winners advancing to Thursday’s quarterfinals. From there, the tournaments take on a modified double-elimination format, where one loss eliminates a team from state-title contention and two losses eliminate a team from the tournament.
Unless otherwise noted, all rankings refer to a team’s seed among the 16 teams in each classification that qualified for last weekend’s state regionals.
CLASS 4A
Wednesday’s loser-out games
(6) Bellarmine Prep vs. (14) Hazen, 3:45 p.m.
(7) Inglemoor vs. (15) Rogers-Puyallup, 5:30 p.m.
(5) Glacier Peak vs. (12) Chiawana, 7:15 p.m.
(1) Woodinville vs. (9) Sunnyside, 9 p.m.
Thursday’s quarterfinals
(4) Central Valley vs. Bellarmine Prep-Hazen winner, 3:45 p.m.
(8) Eastlake vs. Inglemoor-Rogers winner, 5:30 p.m.
(3) Lewis and Clark vs. Glacier Peak-Chiawana winner, 7:15 p.m.
(2) Kentridge vs. Woodinville-Sunnyside winner, 9 p.m.
FAVORITES
No. 1 Woodinville. A state regional loss to No. 8 Eastlake placed the Falcons (23-3) in a Wednesday elimination game, but the reigning state runners-up still have the firepower to win it all. Sophomore forward Mia Hughes averages 20.5 points per game for Woodinville, which rallied to beat No. 2 Kentridge for a one-point overtime win last month. Seattle University-bound point guard Madison DuBois spearheads the Falcons’ attack, and freshman guard Veronica Sheffey adds 14.4 points per contest.
No. 2 Kentridge. The Chargers’ only in-state loss was a one-point overtime defeat to top-seeded Woodinville. Kentridge (24-2) is powered by the interior duo of 6-foot-4 Washington-bound senior JaQuaya Miller and 6-foot-2 junior Jordyn Jenkins, who teamed to lead the Chargers to a state title in 2017 and a fourth-place state trophy last season. Miller averages 17.0 points, 10.4 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game. Jenkins provides a team-high 21.0 points and 9.0 rebounds per contest.
LOCAL TEAM
No. 5 Glacier Peak. Sophomore guard Aaliyah Collins averages a team-high 12 points per game to lead a balanced scoring attack for the Wesco 4A champion Grizzlies (20-3), who hold opponents to 38.3 points per contest with their swarming full-court press. With a victory over Chiawana in Wednesday’s elimination game, the Grizzlies would set up a rematch in Thursday’s quarterfinals against No. 3 Lewis and Clark, which GP beat 49-40 in December. The Grizzlies had won 19 straight games before back-to-back postseason losses to No. 1 Woodinville and No. 4 Central Valley.
GAME WE WOULDN’T MISS
No. 1 Woodinville vs. No. 2 Kentridge. Because of Woodinville’s state regional loss, these two teams would meet in Thursday night’s quarterfinal round if the Falcons win their Wednesday loser-out game. Woodinville and Kentridge have squared off in a pair of overtime classics the past two seasons, with the Falcons winning both matchups by a single point. In last year’s state quarterfinals, Woodinville beat Kentridge 55-54 on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer in the extra period. In a non-league clash last month, the Falcons rallied for a 72-71 overtime win.
PREDICTION
Led by the Miller-Jenkins interior duo, Kentridge edges Woodinville in another nail-biter before beating Lewis and Clark and Eastlake to claim its second state title in three years.
CLASS 3A
Wednesday’s loser-out games
No. 6 Seattle Prep vs. No. 11 Snohomish, 9 a.m.
No. 7 Bethel vs. No. 15 Edmonds-Woodway, 10:30 a.m.
No. 5 Peninsula vs. No. 12 Roosevelt, 12:15 p.m.
No. 8 Arlington vs. No. 9 West Seattle, 2 p.m.
Thursday’s quarterfinals
(4) Kamiakin vs. Seattle Prep-Snohomish winner, 9 a.m.
(1) Prairie vs. Bethel-Edmonds-Woodway winner, 10:30 a.m.
(3) Garfield vs. Peninsula-Roosevelt winner, 12:15 p.m.
(2) Mt. Spokane vs. Arlington-West Seattle winner, 2 p.m.
FAVORITES
No. 1 Prairie. The Falcons’ only in-state loss was to No. 7 Bethel, which could be Prairie’s quarterfinal opponent. Portland State-bound guard Cassidy Gardner and 6-foot-2 Fresno State signee Brooke Walling lead the Falcons (22-2), who outscore teams by 30.4 points per game.
No. 2 Mt. Spokane. Loyola Marymount-bound point guard Aspyn Adams and Washington commit Jayda Noble lead the Wildcats (23-1), who are unbeaten against 3A opponents. Mt. Spokane beat No. 4 Kamiakin 46-45 in its district title game and pummeled No. 7 Bethel 63-32 in Friday’s state regional.
No. 3 Garfield. The reigning state runner-up Bulldogs (22-2) are led by 6-foot-3 Dalayah Daniels, who ESPN ranks as the nation’s No. 13 junior. Garfield outscores opponents by 30.9 points per game and is 21-0 against in-state competition, with all but one of those victories coming by double digits.
No. 4 Kamiakin. Butler-bound guard Oumou Toure averages more than 20 points per game for the Braves (22-2), whose only two losses came by a combined three points to No. 2 Mt. Spokane and 4A state-bound Chiawana.
LOCAL TEAMS
No. 8 Arlington. Four players average at least eight points per game for the youth-laden Eagles (17-6), who earned a share of the Wesco 3A/2A crown. Arlington had won 16 of 17 games prior to a district-title loss to Snohomish and Saturday’s state regional loss to top-seeded Prairie.
No. 11 Snohomish. Senior point guard Maya DuChesne scored 10 third-quarter points to rally the Panthers to a 38-35 win over No. 14 Lake Washington in Saturday’s loser-out state regional. Snohomish (16-7) allows just 37.8 points per game and has won 13 of its past 14 contests, including a district-title victory over Arlington.
No. 15 Edmonds-Woodway. Brooke Kearney hit a game-winning 3-pointer with 11 seconds to play in Saturday’s 48-45 loser-out state regional victory over defending state champion and No. 10 Gig Harbor. The Warriors (14-9) are led by senior guard Adrienne Poling, who averages around 17 points per contest.
GAME WE WOULDN’T MISS
No. 2 Mt. Spokane vs. No. 3 Garfield. In what appears to be a fairly wide-open field, there are several potential matchups one could put here. If this potential Friday night semifinal clash comes to fruition, it would pit two teams with a combined one in-state loss all season.
PREDICTION
Daniels showcases her elite talent and carries Garfield past Peninsula, Mt. Spokane and Kamiakin for the Bulldogs’ fourth state title in program history.
CLASS 2A
LOCAL TEAM
No. 5 Archbishop Murphy. The Wildcats (19-4), last year’s state runners-up, claimed a share of the Wesco 3A/2A crown during their first season in the 15-team league. Archbishop Murphy faces No. 13 Black Hills in an elimination game at 7:15 p.m. Wednesday in the Yakima Valley SunDome, with the winner advancing to Thursday’s quarterfinal against No. 3 Clarkston. The Wildcats are playing without leading scorer and Northern Arizona-bound Emily Rodabaugh, who is out for the season because of an undisclosed injury.
CLASS 1A
LOCAL TEAM
No. 8 King’s.
The Knights (20-6) face No. 9 Medical Lake in an elimination game at 2 p.m. Wednesday in the Yakima Valley SunDome, with the winner advancing to Thursday’s quarterfinal against No. 7 Meridian. Youth-laden King’s is led by sophomore guard Claire Gallagher and freshman Jada Wynn, who is on track to play after missing the last two games with a concussion, according to coach Dan Taylor.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.