YAKIMA — A King’s state tournament opening-round upset over Deer Park kept the Knights season alive Wednesday. On Thursday came the real stunner at the Yakima Valley SunDome.
Two weeks removed from a seven-point loss to District 1 rival Lynden Christian, the No. 10 Knights dominated the top-seeded Lyncs from beginning to end and earned an emphatic 73-50 state quarterfinal win in Yakima.
The win snapped Lynden Christian’s 31-game win streak, bounced the defending champions from contention, and more importantly for King’s, advanced the Knights to the 1A state semifinals.
King’s (21-5) next faces No. 11 King’s Way Christian at 7:15 p.m. Friday for a spot in Saturday’s state title game.
Four Knights finished in double figures. Tyler Linhardt led King’s with 19 points and seven rebounds, Jordan Hansen and Shane McGaughey-Fick each scored 15 and Elyon Zevenbergen had 12 points.
All 15 of Hansen’s points came from beyond the arc. The junior played just 13 minutes off the bench and was 5-of-9 from the 3-point line. The Knights controlled the key, too, outscoring Lynden Christian 34-20 in the paint.
King’s opened the game up with an 18-2 run spanning 4:08 of the first and second quarter, taking a 29-13 lead and never trailed from there.
Lynden Christian guard and University of Michigan signee Cole Bajema was held to four points on 1-of-7 shooting.
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