Lake Stevens Vikings rule north
Published 11:29 pm Tuesday, January 5, 2010
LAKE STEVENS — Welcome back, Arvid.
After missing his team’s first nine games of the season because of an injury, Arvid Isaksen made a fantastic return to the court on Tuesday.
Showing no hint of rust, Isaksen came off the bench and helped propel the Lake Stevens High School boys basketball team to a 62-53 victory over the Cascade Bruins in a Western Conference North Division game. Isaksen, a 6-foot-2 senior guard, scored 16 of his game-high (and varsity career high) 22 points in the second half. His well-rounded effort also included 10 rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Isaksen was out of action for 10 weeks because of a stress fracture in a bone in his left foot that he suffered during football season. He missed the final four football games and the first nine basketball games, including Lake Stevens’ recent trip to the Surf ’N Slam Tournament in San Diego, where the Vikings went 0-3.
“Quite honestly, I knew he was capable but with the layoff and all that, what he did was spectacular,” Lake Stevens coach Mark Hein said.
“I knew it was going to be a big impact, whatever I did,” said Isaksen, who is still doing physical therapy and said he is 85-percent healthy. “It didn’t really affect me when I was playing. I just got a lot of adrenaline.”
Going into the game, Lake Stevens and Cascade were the only North teams with perfect division records. With the win, Lake Stevens (6-0 North, 7-3 overall) stayed in first place and fended off a Cascade team that started fast but ultimately dropped to 4-1, 6-3.
Entering the fourth quarter, Lake Stevens was on top 45-41. Isaksen’s close-range put-back basket increased the lead to six points.
Cascade twice cut the deficit to four later in the fourth. But Isaksen swished a 3-pointer from the right corner to give Lake Stevens a 52-45 edge. And with 2 minutes, 4 seconds remaining he made an aggressive drive and scored a left-handed layin that made it 56-50. Isaksen tallied 11 of his team’s 17 points in the final quarter.
The victorious Vikings rallied from an 11-point second-quarter deficit with defensive pressure, hustle and strong rebounding. Lake Stevens finished with a 44-26 edge on the boards en route to ending its three-game losing streak.
“We needed this, psychologically,” said Hein. “We learned a lot of valuable lessons and played a lot of great teams (in San Diego) and I think it will make us better in the long run, but we needed a win (on Tuesday).”
Besides Isaksen, Lake Stevens’ leading scorers were guard Aaron Maw (12 points, nine rebounds) and guard Jarett Hanson (10 points). Mike Schneider, another guard, contributed eight boards and four points.
Cascade took an 18-7 lead in the second quarter when Johnnie Hilliard scored a strong driving layin. But by halftime Lake Stevens was ahead 32-30. The Vikings eventually sealed it with a 27-14 scoring run over the game’s final 11 minutes.
“I think they settled down after that first quarter,” Cascade coach Jamar Williams said, “and took their time and (were) patient — a lot of second and third opportunities off of their rebounding. That was the key of the game.”
Cascade’s top scorer was guard Chris McGrath, who tallied 12 of his 18 points in the first half. The Bruins’ other leaders were Hilliard (11 points) and Anthony Barton (10 points), who made two 3s in the fourth quarter.
At Lake Stevens H.S.
Cascade16141112—53
Lake Stevens7251317—62
Cascade — McGrath 18, Garrett 5, Hilliard 11, McDaniels 7, Barton 10, Jackson, LaQ. Bruce 2, Taylor, Cline. Lake Stevens — Schneider 4, Hanson 10, Maw 12, Dodge 2, Kaska 8, Isaksen 22, Vandegrift, Israel 4. 3-point goals — McGrath 2, Hilliard 1, McDaniels 1, Barton 2, Hanson 1, Maw 1, Isaksen 2. Records-Cascade 4-1 in division, 6-3 overall. Lake Stevens 6-0, 7-3.
Mike Cane: mcane@heraldnet.com. Check out the prep sports blog Double Team at cmg-northwest2.go-vip.net/heraldnet/doubleteam.
