Prep basketball weekly update: Storylines from around the area

With league play nearing its conclusion and the postseason just around the corner, here’s a look at some of the top high school basketball highlights and storylines from around the area over the past week:

MARINER BOYS BEAT GP, MOVE INTO WESCO 4A DRIVER’S SEAT

The Mariner boys took some lumps during a challenging non-league slate.

But the Marauders sure seem to be hitting their stride in Wesco 4A play.

Mariner is off to a 5-0 conference start, highlighted by a pair of signature victories over fellow Class 4A state contenders. The Marauders hammered Jackson 73-53 on Jan. 17 and then took down 4A sixth-ranked Glacier Peak 53-43 last Tuesday night.

With the victory over the state-ranked Grizzlies, Mariner gained sole possession of first place atop the five-team Wesco 4A.

“We came out and showed how we play (and) what we are,” Marauders junior Makai Bloomfield said after the win over Glacier Peak.

Mariner (11-6, 5-0 Wesco 4A) went 6-6 in non-league play and was riding a four-game losing streak entering the start of its conference slate earlier this month. But it’s clear this team is much better than its non-league record would otherwise suggest.

All six of the Marauders’ losses came to teams that either were ranked or received votes in last week’s Associated Press state polls. Four of their losses came by a combined 14 points. And like many teams, they were dealing with players in and out of the lineup due to COVID-19 protocols.

“We took tough losses, but we kept focus,” Mariner coach Tevin Dillon said. “We knew that once we get to this league, we have to be right. We (wanted) to play as many games as we can — win or lose — and just continue to grow. And we did a really good job of that.”

In their win over Glacier Peak last week, the Marauders leaned on their defense. Mariner used its athleticism and defensive intensity to hold the Grizzlies to a season-low 43 points — nearly 19 points below Glacier Peak’s season average.

And on the offensive end, Dakota Joseph and Bloomfield led the way. Joseph, a 6-foot-5 senior forward, was a force inside with 16 points and a number of rebounds. And Bloomfield was lethal from beyond the arc, scoring 15 points on five 3-pointers.

“This game (was) super important,” Dillon said afterward. “… Getting this win means a lot.”

With just over a week left in Wesco 4A play, the Marauders are in the driver’s seat of the conference title race. In the loss column of the league standings, Mariner is one game ahead of Glacier Peak (9-3, 3-1) and two games ahead of Jackson (11-3, 2-2).

But there’s still plenty of work left to do for the Marauders, as they close their league slate with a trio of rematches in the latter half of Wesco 4A’s double round-robin conference schedule. Mariner faces Jackson on Wednesday, Kamiak on Friday and Glacier Peak on Feb. 8.

“I think it’s the most competitive (Wesco) 4A in the last six years that we’ve been involved with it,” said Glacier Peak coach Brian Hunter, whose team joined Wesco 4A in the 2016-17 season. “It’ll be interesting to see … how this whole thing shakes out.”

ARLINGTON GIRLS BEAT SNOHOMISH, CLINCH WESCO 3A/2A TITLE

The talent-laden Arlington girls have big aspirations this season.

And after securing a league title this past week, the Eagles have checked off the first of their primary goals.

Last Monday night, third-ranked Arlington held off seventh-ranked Snohomish for a 57-44 win in a 3A top-10 showdown that held massive Wesco 3A/2A championship implications. And on Saturday, the Eagles made things official by routing Cedarcrest to clinch the league crown.

“You set your goals at the beginning of the year and you’ve gotta kind of check them off one at a time,” Arlington coach Joe Marsh said after beating Snohomish. “… That’s a big win for us.”

In last Monday’s showdown of conference unbeatens, the Eagles (12-2, 9-0 Wesco 3A/2A) used their high-pressure defense to race to a commanding 32-12 first-half lead. But Arlington went ice-cold in the second half against Snohomish’s 2-3 zone, which allowed the Panthers to climb back into the game and cut the deficit to 38-35 early in the fourth quarter.

Yet just when it seemed like the Eagles were on the verge of a massive collapse, their standout one-two punch turned the tide.

With her team clinging to a three-point lead near the midway point of the fourth quarter, 6-foot-2 junior standout Jenna Villa drove to the basket and converted a tough three-point play. Just moments later, standout senior guard Keira Marsh stole a pass and raced downcourt for a layup to stretch the margin to 43-35 and help Arlington pull away.

“I’m really proud of our fight,” Joe Marsh said of his team’s response to Snohomish’s second-half push. “… We regrouped and found ourselves. (We) came back and got some stops and some buckets and pulled away finally.”

This is the Eagles’ first league title since they rattled off a streak of two Wesco 4A North titles and two Wesco 3A North titles in a four-season span from 2012-13 through 2015-16.

Arlington narrowly missed out on a pair of Wesco 3A/2A titles in 2018-19 and 2019-20, finishing second in the conference standings both years by virtue of losing the head-to-head tiebreaker to the league champion.

Meanwhile, Snohomish (10-2, 5-1) enters the final week of league play tied with Stanwood (8-3, 5-1) and Everett (8-5, 4-1) for second place in the loss column of the Wesco 3A/2A standings. The Panthers’ matchup against Stanwood was among the many games canceled earlier this month due to COVID-19 protocols. Snohomish is slated to face Everett on Monday night.

“We’re not done with Snohomish,” Joe Marsh said. “I’m not gonna be surprised when we see them again.”

SULTAN GIRLS EARN LANDMARK WIN OVER KING’S

The Sultan girls keep achieving milestones.

This one was likely the biggest yet.

The Turks earned a landmark 40-38 non-league win over perennial 1A state powerhouse King’s on Saturday afternoon, snapping the program’s 20-game losing streak to the Knights.

It was Sultan’s first win over King’s since Jan. 19, 2010. The Turks had lost the teams’ previous 20 matchups by an average margin of 34.3 points.

“It’s one of those milestones that you want to achieve and kind of get that monkey off your back,” Sultan coach Todd Weideman said. “… It was really huge. It was a great building point for our program.”

The Turks experienced a massive breakthrough during last spring’s abbreviated slate, finishing 10-4 for their first winning season in more than a decade.

This winter, they’ve taken another step forward.

Sultan (13-2) has steamrolled through the Emerald Sound Conference’s Coho Division — the lower of the two divisions in the conference’s competitively balanced setup. The Turks are 9-0 in Coho Division play, having outscored their league opponents by 27.1 points per game.

And by beating King’s, Sultan showed it can compete with the top teams in the Chinook Division — the conference’s upper tier. King’s (13-7) will finish second in the Chinook Division and beat division champion Seattle Academy (13-3) earlier this season.

“We went into the game kind of with the attitude to see where we’re at as a program — kind of as a benchmark,” Weideman said. “… And then to go out and just let the girls play and watch them battle and actually pull off the win, it was great.”

Last spring, standout guard Grace Trichler carried Sultan with 23.5 points per game. This season, with an influx of talented freshmen, it’s been more of a balanced attack for the Turks.

Trichler, a senior, still leads Sultan with 13.8 points per game. But as one of six Turks averaging at least five points per contest, she’s been more of a facilitator and hasn’t needed to put up big scoring totals every game.

That was evident in the win over King’s. Freshman forward Cascadia Yates led Sultan with 15 points, junior center Faith Anderson added 14 points and freshman forward Taylor Cushing chipped in nine points.

“This year has been a real different year for Grace,” Weideman said. “The ability for her to play basketball as a floor leader has really changed her game. She doesn’t need to be the scorer. She has a great group of kids around her that are all scoring — and she does other things.”

Sultan concludes its regular season this week and begins postseason play Saturday in the opening round of the Emerald Sound Conference Tournament. As the Coho Division champion, the Turks will be the tournament’s No. 7 seed.

The top three finishers in the ESC tournament earn 1A state regional berths. The fourth-place and fifth-place finishers will play winner-to-state games against the top two finishers from the 1A District 1 Tournament — which includes 1A top-ranked Nooksack Valley and 1A second-ranked Lynden Christian.

Sultan is seeking its first state berth in program history.

“Last year’s COVID season was kind of a breakthrough season for us,” Weideman said. “And this is just building on top of it.”

ARLINGTON BOYS CLOSING IN ON WESCO 3A/2A CROWN

After all the twists and turns in a roller-coaster Wesco 3A/2A boys race, Arlington is closing in on the league title.

Heading into the final week of conference action, the Eagles (12-4, 10-1 Wesco 3A/2A) remain alone atop the 16-team league’s standings as the only one-loss team in conference play. Shorecrest (15-2, 10-2), Stanwood (11-5, 9-2) and Mountlake Terrace (10-2, 7-2) are sitting right behind with two league losses apiece.

Arlington holds the head-to-head tiebreaker over both Shorecrest and Mountlake Terrace. The Eagles’ lone conference loss was to Stanwood.

Arlington closes league play against Archbishop Murphy (6-8, 5-5) on Wednesday and Marysville Getchell (5-10, 5-6) on Friday. If the Eagles win both games, they would secure their first league title since winning back-to-back Wesco 4A North crowns in the 2012-13 and 2013-14 seasons.

EVERETT GIRLS ON A WINNING STREAK

The Everett girls have won six consecutive games, including an impressive 54-41 victory over Archbishop Murphy last Tuesday night.

The Seagulls (8-5, 4-1 Wesco 3A/2A) are tied with Snohomish (10-2, 5-1) and Stanwood (8-3, 5-1) for second place in the loss column of the Wesco 3A/2A standings. Everett’s lone league loss was to Stanwood. The Seagulls have had a number of conference games canceled, including their matchup against league champion Arlington.

Everett closes its conference slate against Snohomish on Monday and Edmonds-Woodway (4-12, 3-7) on Thursday.

STANWOOD BOYS WIN ON HALFCOURT BUZZER-BEATER

Stanwood senior Kaeden McGlothin banked in a long 3-pointer at the buzzer to lift the Spartans to a thrilling 49-46 non-league win over Mount Vernon on Saturday night.

With the game tied in the closing seconds, McGlothin received a baseline inbound pass, took three dribbles and launched the game-winner from just inside halfcourt.

It was the fifth consecutive victory for Stanwood (11-5), which has won four of those games by three points or fewer.

Video of the #BuzzerBeater https://t.co/ZUMCU56AC0— Evan Caldwell (@Evan_SCN) January 30, 2022