O’Dea’s physicality, cold shooting results in early Tacoma Dome exit for Lincoln
The same phrase seems to creep into conversation every winter, when the state’s best basketball programs arrive in the cavernous Tacoma Dome — no one shoots well on the first day.
No. 6 Lincoln High School (19-7) was a victim of that adage Wednesday evening. The Abes connected on just 20 of 67 shots Wednesday afternoon in their Class 3A state tournament opener, and dropped a 69-51 season-ending loss to No. 11 O’Dea.
It didn’t help either, that O’Dea’s 6-foot-9 power forward Paolo Banchero — a five-star prospect who is the consensus No. 6 player in the nation in the 2021 class — spent his afternoon keeping the Abes out of the paint.
“They weren’t scared,” Banchero said. “Most teams I could say are a little timid when they come inside on me, but they weren’t scared, so I just stood straight up.”
Banchero finished with a stunning seven blocks — O’Dea had 11 as a team — to send the Fighting Irish (18-8) into Thursday’s quarterfinals, and end Lincoln’s string of runs to that round, which date back to 2016. The Abes advanced as far as the semifinals the past two seasons.
“We had a tough time finding a rhythm. We’re used to playing inside-out, and having Paolo down there whose 6-10, it’s tough to get that inside game going with him being so big,” first-year Lincoln coach Ryan Rogers said.
“It kind of threw us off a little, and we didn’t make the plays we needed to make.”
Colorado football signee Jayden Simon, who typically controls Lincoln’s inside game, was held to just six points, though he did pull down a game-high 14 rebounds.
The Abes nearly matched O’Dea on the boards — the Irish finished with a 47-46 advantage — but the Irish pulled away early in the second half, finishing 26 of 60 from the floor.
Paul Johnson led all scorers with 15 points, while Jermaine Davis had 12 and Banchero was held to nine. Earnest Yearby was the only scorer for Lincoln to reach double figures with 11, while Julien Simon had nine.
“Everyone is capable of scoring,” Banchero said. “Everyone’s here to win, and we’re going to just try to do that.”
The Irish, which were a presumed 3A state favorite at the beginning of the season before injuries cost them several games, were without standout sophomore guard John Christofilis, who was sitting at the end of the bench with a boot on his left leg.
“There’s a little bit of adjustment having to play without John, just because he’s so dynamic ... but he’s been out for pretty long now, so I think we’ve been able to adjust well,” Banchero said.
After winning an undefeated 3A Pierce County League championship earlier this season, Lincoln saw its championship hopes derailed by a Metro League team for the fifth consecutive season. The Abes also lost to state favorite Rainier Beach in last week’s regional round.
“That’s how it works out,” Roger said. “You have to be ready to play those games throughout the season — they all matter. You can’t take any opponent lightly.
“It’s tough, because the Metro League has so many good teams. There’s teams that drop in the (WIAA’s RPI rankings) that should be at the top. O’Dea is a great team.”
NO. 11 O’DEA | 19 | 16 | 20 | 14 | — | 69 |
NO. 6 LINCOLN | 9 | 10 | 10 | 22 | — | 54 |
TEAM STATISTICS
O – Shooting: 26 of 60 (43.3 percent). Free throws: 12 of 18 (66.7). Turnovers: 18.
L – Shooting: 20 of 67 (29.9 percent). Free throws: 10 of 25 (40). Turnovers: 13.
INDIVIDUAL SCORING
O – John Misel 7, Paolo Banchero 9, Dezjay Perkins 4, Jermaine Davis 12, Noah Williams 10, Calvin Thomas III 3, Daniel Thomas 1, Max Debiec 4, Paul Johnson 15, Jaylon Ellis 2, Emonte Scott 2.
L – Kashaud Babbs 4, Earnest Yearby 11, Julien Simon 9, Jayden Simon 6, Armoni Bashay 2, Reggie Archibald 4, Parker Androy 5, Chris Whitford 8, Ezra Nightingale 2.
This story was originally published February 27, 2019 at 7:19 PM.
