In the world of college basketball recruiting, like in life, it’s not what you know, but who you know.
Rainier Beach coach Mike Bethea’s relationship with a University of Kansas assistant coach has given the Jayhawks a pipeline to the Seattle high school.
When Vikings senior Anrio Adams signs with Kansas – he’s given the Jayhawks an oral commitment – he’ll be the third Rainier Beach player to go to KU since 2004.
Adams, a 6-foot-3 guard, said his closeness with former Rainier Beach standouts and twins Rodrick and Lodrick Stewart led him to choose KU. Rodrick played at KU for three seasons – he was on the Jayhawks’ 2008 national championship team – after transferring from USC.
“It’s basically a family thing,” Adams said. “I’ve been growing up with the twins since fourth grade. They’re brothers to me; close to blood.”
Adams said he thought about the possibility of playing at Kansas when he was a freshman.
“It was nothing I was for sure with,” he said, “and then I made that decision my senior year because it was time. I felt like Kansas was a great place for me.”
When he gets to KU, he’ll see a face familiar with Rainier Beach – KU assistant coach Kurtis Townsend, who has been a close friend to Bethea since the 1980s.
Townsend has recruited Rainier Beach with success.
Jamal Crawford chose Michigan when Townsend was with the Wolverines. The Stewart twins picked USC when Townsend was there.
Townsend spent one season at the University of Miami and Vikings center C.J. Giles gave an oral commitment to the Hurriances. Before Giles signed, Townsend accepted the KU job and Giles followed him to the college basketball powerhouse.
ALL IN THE FAMILY
It’s a family affair for Seattle Prep’s Mitch Brewe when it comes to basketball. Both his parents played basketball at the University of Puget Sound.
Father Eric Brewe and mother Kelly starred on the UPS men’s and women’s basketball team during the early 1980s.
Brewe, a 6-8 forward for the Panthers, committed to play basketball at the University of Santa Barbara.
Older sister Quinn Brewe played at Seattle University, and won a Class 3A basketball title with Meadowdale.
“It’s kind of fun to see her go through it all again,” Brewe said about his sister.
And will he have a matching state championship trophy to place on the mantel?
“Hopefully. My fingers are crossed,” Brewe said.
A PACE TO FORGET
For three quarters it looked like the Lakeside girls’ basketball team was going to find a place in the 3A state tournament record book for all the wrong reasons.
The Lions scored four points in the first half and six in the third. That put them on pace to match or best Kennedy’s dubious mark of 17 points set in 2004 for the least points scored in a state tournament game. Things were so tough for Lakeside in the first half that it went into the locker room having made just one field goal after shooting 5 percent from the field.
That changed in the fourth quarter in a big way. The Lions’ shots started to fall, and they crept close to Seattle Prep, but eventually lost, 36-32. The 22 fourth-quarter points did allow Lakeside to avoid making history.
For the game Lakeside shot 19 percent, going 9 of 48 from the field.
THIRD TIME IS THE CHARM
With Shorecrest’s 59-48 win over Kamiakin on Friday, the Highlanders assured themselves their first state tournament trophy in school history. They’ll meet Seattle Prep in the fourth-place game today and can do no worse than sixth place.
Shorecrest punched its first ticket to state in 2010; it won its opening game against Lakes before falling to eventual state champion Cleveland and then Kennedy. Last year the Highlanders went one-and-done against Timberline.
This year Shorecrest was again upended by Cleveland in the quarterfinals, but showed resilience in dropping No. 2 Kamiakin in the consolation bracket.
Doug Pacey: 253-597-8271 doug.pacey@thenewstribune.com blog.thenewstribune.com/preps Twitter: @DougPaceyTNT
Staff writer Eric D. Williams and contributing writer Joe Sunnen contributed to this report.
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