Having dropped a heartbreaker to Federal Way in the first go-round, Todd Beamer got its revenge Friday night, beating its rival, 53-50.
With the win, Beamer (13-5, 12-3) moved into a second-place tie with Curtis (15-5, 12-3), and both are a half-game behind Federal Way (13-6, 13-3) in the SPSL South standings. Beamer plays a second straight home game at 7 p.m. tonight against Curtis.
“The only reason it feels great is because of the league standings,” Beamer head coach Winston Bell said. “Our guys went into it thinking, ‘It’s just another game.’ As for the next one, we need it to be able to get toward our goal.”
The game bore the hallmarks of a true rivalry, with Beamer and Federal Way trading baskets from the third quarter on, neither team willing to surrender.
But, with just 20 seconds left in the game and the Titans up by one, Beamer senior forward Thomas Rhodes, who finished with a game-high 16 points, drove to the basket and hit a runner, giving the Titans a three-point advantage.
After a timeout, Federal Way took the ball down the court and missed two 3-pointers that could have tied the game.
Federal Way head coach Jerome Collins said his team did several things wrong throughout the contest.
“I really felt we didn’t execute,” Collins said. “We didn’t finish plays at the rim. We just seemed to be out of sync. You have to be able to pass, and you have to be able to catch.”
With the home student section storming the court and his players ready to celebrate, Bell instructed his squad to stay on the sidelines to shake hands with the Federal Way players.
He didn’t want a repeat of what happened following the first meeting between the two squads Jan. 4.
Federal Way came back from huge deficit to capture a late 61-55 victory. After the game, no players from either team shook hands as the Eagles celebrated on the court with their fans.
“Well, because it’s not that big,” Bell said. “We look at how they performed when they cheered and they looked like they won the national championship. This is just one game. We’re little old Beamer. Why the excitement about beating us?”
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