Mountlake Terrace’s Jackson Wallis reaches up to try and block at shot by Snohomish’s Luke Davis during the 3A district loser-out playoff game on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
MOUNTLAKE TERRACE – When Jeff Larson entered the Snohomish boys basketball locker room, he was greeted with a roaring cheer. After the coach returned to the hall a few minutes later, it looked like he just stepped off Splash Mountain, with clothes drenched and a big smile on his face.
However, the only rollercoaster ride was Thursday’s game, where senior Bryson Wheat (25 points) and the No. 10-seed Panthers (8-14) knocked off the seventh-seeded Mountlake Terrace Hawks (11-11) 49-43 in the opening round of the District 1 3A Boys Basketball Tournament.
It marked Snohomish’s first playoff win in almost 11 years to the day (Feb. 12, 2014).
“I love them,” Larson said. “It’s why you do it. And everybody says that, and there’s no guarantees. More than the win, just to see the ‘compete’ at that level, but to see their excitement and joy, it’s more exciting even than the win. I’m just so happy for them to get to feel this.”
For a team that lost twice as many games as it won this season, on the road against a program that finished fourth in the state tournament last year, the Panthers sure did not look like the underdogs.
Both teams started out cold, but Snohomish led 8-4 through the first quarter. The Panthers started to build themselves a lead in the second, forcing turnovers and converting layups to quickly take a 20-7 lead just 2:30 into the frame. But Mountlake Terrace – thanks to a stout perimeter defense anchored by 6-foot-5 senior Svayjeet Singh (14 points, 4 blocks) – tightened up, going on a 6-0 run in the final 5:30 to enter halftime trailing by seven.
“We knew they were going to go on runs, that was all in our game plan,” Snohomish junior Hudson Smith said. “It was important that it wasn’t a surprise. That kept us focused, and we just locked back in in the locker room and came out with the same energy that we started the game with.”
Smith (11 points) led the scoring in the first half with six, but it was Wheat – the Panthers’ lone senior – who shouldered the offensive load down the stretch. After the Hawks cut the deficit to 26-21 with three minutes left in the third, Larson called a timeout. The play he drew up worked perfectly, ending with a Wheat 3-pointer to stop the bleeding.
“Great passes from our point guard Chase [Clark], bigs were setting good screens, it was high-level,” Wheat said. “We get the ball down low, everybody collapses, and I was just there to hit the shot for the kick out.”
Although Mountlake Terrace freshman Rayshaun Connor (14 points) hit a jumper on the next possession, Wheat responded with another 3-pointer. The Panthers brought a 34-28 lead into the fourth, where Wheat scored the first four points to go ahead by double-digits, but the Hawks would not back down.
Displaying their big-game pedigree, Mountlake Terrace applied air-tight defense to force Snohomish into mistakes. The Panthers committed a five-second violation for not inbounding the ball quick enough with 1:16 left, then sent an inbound pass the entire length of the court and out of bounds on the next possession when trying to avoid another violation. Larson threw both hands on his head. With 32.3 seconds left, the Hawks had the ball down by four.
“Rely on your practice, rely on your coaching. You know how to do this,” Larson recalled telling his team. “Trust your fundamentals, and V-cut [away from the defender] and meet the ball, and squeeze it. If you do those things, and if you hit a couple free throws, you might win this. And they did.”
With the game on the line, Mountlake Terrace turned the ball over, then fouled Wheat, who knocked down both free throws to take a 49-43 lead. It remained until the clock hit zero.
For the first time in over a decade – including Larson’s three-year stint with the program – Snohomish had a postseason win.
“It means everything,” Wheat said. “We’ve been working all season for this, all summer. Everybody’s been completely bought in for years leading up to this, and this is kind of what it [climaxed] to. … I was coming in thinking this may be my last game, but I knew these guys weren’t going to let it happen, and I mean, I’ll remember this for the rest of my life.”
Larson’s message on his first day was that he wanted to change the program, both its play and its perception from the outside, according to Smith. While Snohomish’s attention will shift to its quarterfinal matchup against second-seeded Shorecrest on Saturday, it accomplished a major goal on Thursday.
And a smaller one as well.
“I’ve always wanted to drench a coach [with water],” Smith said. “And now we got to do it, so that’s really special.”
Snohomish’s Chase Clark reaches out to knock the ball away from Mountlake Terrace’s Anthony Fuentes during the 3A district loser-out playoff game on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mountlake Terrace’s Rayshaun Connor makes a layup during the 3A district loser-out playoff game against Snohomish on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish’s Bryson Wheat crosses the ball between his legs to keep it away from the outstretched arm of Mountlake Terrace’s Jordan Wilson during the 3A district loser-out playoff game on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mountlake Terrace’s Svayjeet Singh blocks a shot by Snohomish’s Bryson Wheat during the 3A district loser-out playoff game on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mountlake Terrace’s Rayshaun Connor tries to get around a falling Snohomish’s Jack Rotondo during the 3A district loser-out playoff game on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish’s Bryson Wheat makes a layup during the 3A district loser-out playoff game Mountlake Terrace on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish’s Bryson Wheat steals the ball away from Mountlake Terrace’s Brody Myers-Little during the 3A district loser-out playoff game on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish’s Jack Rotondo drives toward the hoop while being guarded Mountlake Terrace’s Cody Ekanayake during the 3A district loser-out playoff game on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish’s Bryson Wheat makes a layup during the 3A district loser-out playoff game against Mountlake Terrace on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish’s Jack Rotondo yells in celebration during the 3A district loser-out playoff game against Mountlake Terrace on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mountlake Terrace’s Svayjeet Singh leaps in the air after the basketball during the 3A district loser-out playoff game against Snohomish on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish’s Luke Davis makes a jump shot during the 3A district loser-out playoff game against Mountlake Terrace on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mountlake Terrace’s Rayshaun Connor dribbles around a screen during the 3A district loser-out playoff game against Snohomish on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mountlake Terrace head coach Johnny Phillips yells in frustration during the 3A district loser-out playoff game against Snohomish on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish’s Bryson Wheat tries to reach out a block a layup by Mountlake Terrace’s Rayshaun Connor during the 3A district loser-out playoff game on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish’s Jack Rotondo and Luke Davis try and grab the ball from Mountlake Terrace’s Jackson Wallis during the 3A district loser-out playoff game on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mountlake Terrace’s Rayshaun Connor takes the ball down the court during the 3A district loser-out playoff game against Snohomish on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish’s Deyton Wheat blocks a shot by Mountlake Terrace’s Svayjeet Singh during the 3A district loser-out playoff game on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish’s Luke Davis tries to get a clear shot during the 3A district loser-out playoff game Mountlake Terrace on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish’s Bryson Wheat is fouled while attempting a layup during the 3A district loser-out playoff game Mountlake Terrace on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
The Snohomish bench reacts to a foul call during the 3A district loser-out playoff game against Mountlake Terrace on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mountlake Terrace’s Rayshaun Connor tries to steal the ball from Snohomish’s Bryson Wheat during the 3A district loser-out playoff game on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mountlake Terrace head coach Johnny Phillips gestures at the referees in confusion after a foul call during the 3A district loser-out playoff game against Snohomish on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish’s Bryson Wheat reacts to beating Mountlake Terrace in a 3A district loser-out playoff game on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
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