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SPORTS - LOPEZ ISLAND BOYS BASKETBALL |
Related StoriesLopez Island 2007-2008 Boys Basketball Schedule and Links to Stories and Photos | |
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Lobos finish record season at state
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After the loss of the back-and-forth game, Smith reminded his seniors they accomplished something no other Lopez Island boys basketball team have. "I told them their one of the best 16 teams in the state and that we started a new tradition and let's keep it rolling." Though they were bummed their season ended too soon, the Lopez seniors were glad to be completing the year east of the mountains. "I'm glad we finished off at state," said Keaton Farris. "There's no place I'd rather be." "It was great," William Yukluk said of the experience. "I wish we would've gone further… It was the best time of my life." "It was a great season," said Barry Christopherson. "We got here. That was a goal since we were kids." In addition to being the first Lopez boys squad to play at state, this year's Lobos went undefeated at home with a 10-0 record, won the Northwest 1B League with one loss, and their 18-4 overall record is the best in school history. "We raised the bar for the next Lopez teams," Jordan Smith said. Future Lopez athletes and sports fans will be aware of Class of 2008's success. Banners noting their league title and playoff appearance in football and conference championship and state appearance in basketball will be hung in the Lopez Island High School gymnasium. "It will be cool...Everyone will walk in the gym and that will be our group up there," Isaac Berg said. After a disappointing outing in their first state game against Lake Quinault, Lopez left their jitters behind. And if a couple more shots had dropped late in the game against Cusick, the Lobos might have been shooting foul shots down the stretch. "It was just nice to come out and play a better game and show what we can do," Jordan Smith said. "I felt we could've been one of the best teams here." The Lobos went up 12-6 in the first quarter but the Panthers closed the gap to 14-12 by the end of the period. The game remained close through the first half with Cusick leading 31-30 at the break. Lopez scored six unanswered points to gain a 36-31 margin two and a half minutes into the third quarter. The Panthers clawed their way back and went up 45-42 at the end of three periods. Jordan Smith's two free throws with 5:57 remaining put the Lobos up 48-47. The Panthers responded with a six-point run and clinched the win by hitting 11 of 13 free throws in the final five minutes. The Panthers (18-6) advance to a consolation semifinal contest against Lummi (12-9), who nipped Klickitat (10-15) in double overtime. Shooting much better than the previous outing, the Lobos made 21 of 45 2-point attempts for 47 percent. They sank 17 of 21 free throws for 81 percent. Smith led all scorers with 21 points. The other Lopez scorers were: Keaton Farris 8, Barry Christopherson 7, Shaun Samuel 6, Alex Buffum 5, Colton Jardine 4, Isaac Berg 2 and William Yukluk 1. Raymond Ostlie was high scorer for Cusick with 17 and Spencer Shanholtzer had 15. Cusick scored on 18 of 57 two-point attempts for 32 percent. The Panthers went 15-for-18 at the free-throw line for 83 percent. Three-point shots really weren't a factor as both teams shot below average. The Lobos were 2-for-8 for 25 percent and the Panthers were 3-for-18 for 17 percent. Lopez out-rebounded Cusick 36-32. |
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SAN JUAN ISLANDER © 2008 |
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