Kamiak boys snap decade-long winless streak against Jackson

Published 10:52 pm Tuesday, January 12, 2016

MUKILTEO — For three quarters, the Kamiak-Jackson boys basketball game on Tuesday night was a back-and-forth affair with 13 ties, eight lead changes and neither team leading by more than four points.

In the fourth quarter all that changed.

Kamiak scored the first two baskets of the final period to move in front by five points, and the Knights pulled away from there for a 70-59 Western Conference 4A victory that ended a decade-long winless stretch against the Timberwolves.

How meaningful was the outcome? Kamiak students and fans stormed the court at the final buzzer to congratulate their team, a jubilant celebration that led the Jackson coaches and players to forego the traditional postgame exchange of handshakes. “This was a big game for them,” Kamiak coach Cory West said of his players. “(Jackson) is the team they think is their rival … so it’s good to get a win.”

The Knights won with a fourth quarter that was only a tad short of flawless. They led by one to start the period and by as much as 14 points in the late moments by converting nine of 13 chances from the field (.692 percent), including two 3-pointers. Senior post Coleman Grayson, who played sparingly in the first three quarters because of foul trouble, led the way with eight points in the last period, pushing his total to 14 for the game to go with 10 rebounds.

“We just had guys stepping up (in the fourth quarter),” West said. “We hit some big shots. … It came down to knocking down shots.”

At the other end Kamiak held Jackson to just three field goals in the fourth quarter, including just one in the final 51/2 minutes, and that was a meaningless layin in the closing seconds.

“I’m just proud of my kids for the way they fought through and played the whole game,” said West, who got his first win against Jackson since becoming Kamiak’s head coach in the 2008-09 season.

Sophomore guard Carson Tuttle led Kamiak with 21 points. Junior guard Christian Clausen added 14 points and senior wing Gavin Patrick chipped in 10 points.

The Knights, said West, “are on a whole other level of intensity right now, and I want to keep that increasing. … They’re a close-knit group. They sit together, they’re hanging out with each other, and that’s going to take us a long way. They’re playing for each other and I think that’s the biggest thing.”

With a 6-0 Wesco record, Kamiak will now gear up for a showdown with Cascade, also 6-0, on Friday night. That game will be in the Bruins’ gym.

The enormity of that game, West said, “is tenfold.” The two teams played four times in the last month of last season, with Cascade winning three of those games. This will be the first meeting of the new season, “so it’s huge,” he said.

Jackson, which lost its second straight league game _ the T-wolves were beaten by Cascade last Thursday night, 66-54 _ was led by senior guard Sam Saufferer with 22 points. Senior guard Brian Brown added 10 points.

At Kamiak H.S.

Jackson 14 21 13 11 —59

Kamiak 14 19 16 21 —70

Jackson—Brian Brown 10, Parker Manalo 6, Ian Willgress 0, Jordan Brajcich 7, Connor Marschall 0, Avery Goodwin 2, Hunter Johnson 2, Sam Saufferer 22, Colton Faddis 10, Islim Ouldtaki 0. Kamiak—Carson Tuttle 21, Christian Clausen 14, Jase Wiley 4, Trevor Gray 0, Hunter Watkins 3, Coleman Grayson 14, Gavin Patrick 10, Keller Whitney 2, Nathan Shubert 2, Patrick Olson 0. Records—Jackson 4-2 league, 7-5 overall. Kamiak 6-0, 9-3.