YAKIMA — Clover Park coach Mel Ninnis said he didn’t feel comfortable about his team coming into Thursday’s 2A boys state quarterfinal against Anacortes.
Physically the team was prepared for the three-day state tournament, but mentally they were not, he said. What followed was a 59-51 Warriors loss to the Seahawks.
Overconfident, perhaps? Yes, Ninnis said.
“We got the consequence for that lack of preparation mentally,” he said. “Sometimes, when you think you’re more athletic and you think you’re a better basketball player, those 1,500 little things really add up.”
The Warriors (20-7) fall into the consolation bracket and will face West Valley of Yakima today at 10:30 a.m. Anacortes advances to face Northwest Conference-rival Lynden in the 5:30 p.m. semifinal. The No. 1 Lions handed the Seahawks their only losses in league play.
Clover Park was held to 30.9 percent shooting, converting 17 of 55 field goals, and its two top scorers were kept in check for most of the game. David Crisp and Philip Winston, who combine to average nearly 46 points a game, collectively shot 5 of 25 from the field for 18 points.
The Warriors were counting on a big scoring run by either Crisp or Winston to jump-start the offense. It never happened. Crisp (1-for-14 shooting) only made one field goal in the first quarter, and had a single free throw after halftime to finish with five points.
With Anacortes’ lead at 38-33 going into the final quarter, the Seahawks scored the first six points of the quarter to take its first double-digit lead at 44-33 after Sam D’Amelio hit his only field goal – a 3-pointer with 7:03 left in the game. Andrew Medalia was one of three Seahawks to finish in double figures with a game-high 16 points and Matt Adridge and A.J. Yost had 13 and 12 points.
Michael Hill Jr., a 6-foot-7 forward, finished with just nine points – all in the fourth quarter – as the Warriors’ big men were plagued by foul trouble. Xavier Means, who finished with six points and four rebounds, fouled out with 3:34 left and Clover Park trailing 46-38.
Meg Wochnick: 360-754-5473 mwochnick@theolympian.com theolympian.com/southsoundsports @megwochnick
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