MILL CREEK — Thanks to seniors Michael Minor and Tevin Dillon, Mariner is headed to state for the third time in three years.
Minor scored 23 points, Dillon converted the go-ahead basket with less than five seconds remaining, and Wesco South No. 2 seed Mariner defeated Wesco North No. 1 seed Lake Stevens 51-49 in a District 1 boys basketball semifinal game Friday at Henry M. Jackson High School.
Mariner plays Mountlake Terrace in the District 1 championship on Feb. 28th at Jackson High School. The winner of that game will receive a No. 1 seed to state. The loser will receive the No. 2 seed.
Lake Stevens plays Jackson in a loser-out game Tuesday at 8 p.m. at Jackson.
“Mike and Tevin have been the pillars of our team all year,” Mariner head coach Dexter Griffen said after the game.
“Their two guards (were key),” Lake Stevens head coach Mark Hein added of Mariner’s ability to create shots in a tough, defensive game. “Minor hurt us throughout the game, and Dillon hit that last shot. … He got to the rim.”
Dillon finished with 16 points and hit two 3-pointers. Minor scored seven of his 23 points in the fourth quarter, including converting a highlight reel lay-up with his back to the basket that put Mariner up 48-45 with a minute to play.
“We expected to be here,” Dillon said simply of playing for the district championship.
But Mariner almost didn’t make it.
Down 43-35 with just over five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, Lake Stevens came all the way back to take a one-point 49-48 lead after senior center Sean Stickney converted two foul shots with 23.6 seconds remaining.
It was Lake Steven’s first lead of the second half and it was potentially devastating.
But Dillon, a 6-foot-2 senior guard, rebounded a missed Lake Stevens free throw with 13.6 seconds to play and drove to the hoop. He made the basket, fouled Stickney out in the process and converted the free throw for the game’s final score.
“Our experience is (huge),” Mariner post Damascus Purnell said of Mariner’s ability to play through close games. “It’s gotten to the point where we understand what we’ve got to do.”
Stickney scored six of his eight points in the fourth quarter and made a steal that led to another basket by Lake Stevens’ Mike Schneider. The 6-foot-4 senior also finished with 10 rebounds.
Arvid Isaksen scored nine points to lead all Lake Stevens scorers and Schneider added eight points and six rebounds.
No Mariner players besides Dillon and Minor scored more than four points. Purnell finished with eight rebounds.
Under intense defensive pressure for much of the first half, Lake Stevens couldn’t get the ball inside and couldn’t hit a shot from outside. The Vikings shot 6-for-25 from the field in the first half.
“They did a great job of taking away (Shane) Kaska and Stickney in the first half,” Hein said. “… We took what they gave us.”
Thanks to that defense and Dillon’s last second shot, Lake Stevens will have to wait a little longer to see if it can qualify for its first 4A state berth in school history.
“Coming out of the timeout (after Stickney gave Lake Stevens the lead), coach told me ‘Tevin, lead your team to this victory,’” Dillon said.
At Jackson H.S.
Mariner10101615—51
Lake Stevens1351516—49
At Henry M. Jackson H.S.
Mariner—Yusuf 2, Minor 23, Dillon 16, Doerscher 2, Malysheff 4, Purnell 4, McCullough 0, Kiel 0. Lake Stevens—Legg 4, Isaksen 9, Finley 6, Schneider 8, TJ Dodge 6, Maw 0, J Dodge 0, Kaska 8, Stickney 8. 3-pointers—Isaksen 2, TJ Dodge 1, Minor 3, Dillon 2. Records—Mariner 18-4 overall. Lake Stevens 18-4.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
