Prep Basketball Roundup: Scores and reports from The Blast Zone
Ladies and Gentleman — Mark Morris girls, Kelso boys get back to action in T-Town
Jordan Nailon / blastzonenews@gmail.com
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While most folks were busy picking pieces off day-old turkey carcasses and taking turns lounging on the couch a pair of teams from the area were already back to work at the T-Town Throwdown at Silas High School in Tacoma.
Fans of the Monarchs and Hilanders can be proud of their teams for putting the cookies away earlier than most, and this weekend there will be another handful of high school hoops teams that will be getting off the extended sleigh ride and back on the saddle again.
And here’s how the first action after that famous silent night went down in T-Town.
High School Girls Basketball
Mark Morris run down by Seattle Academy
The Monarchs may have been regretting that extra piece of Christmas pie down when push came to shove, Thursday, at the T-Town Throwdown. The Mark Morris girls basketball team held a nine point lead going into the final quarter against Seattle Academy, only to lose 45-44 in the non-league holiday gathering.
“Went toe to toe with a very good Seattle Academy team,” MM coach Sean Atkins said. “We had control the whole game, but missed a few chippies and free throws in the fourth to allow them to come back and steal it late.”
Mark Morris was led in scoring by Reese Johnston who dropped in 17 points to go with six rebounds and five steals. The Monarchs led 27-22 at the half and then held the Cardinals to just four points in the third quarter to extend their lead out as big as it had been at the end of any quarter.
But Seattle Academy caught fire in the fourth.
Specifically, Maddie Jahn got hot like Santa’s boots down the wrong chimney as she posted a game-high 25 points for the Cards. Only three players scored in the game for Seattle Academy, with Calla Nelson adding 18 points to the winning tally.
Kiki Makaiwi added 15 points with a trio of 3-pointers and five rebounds for the Monarchs, while Kadence Gorans chipped in six points and grabbed seven boards.
“Kiki and Reese both did a great job scoring the basketball each scoring in double figures,” Atkins noted. “Kea (Makaiwi) did her job by snagging nine rebounds and dishing out two assists with no (turnovers).”
Mark Morris will return to action back at Silas High School in Tacoma at 9:30 a.m., Friday, against Juanita.
High School Boys Basketball
Kelso overwhelmed by new Mountainview
The Hilanders aren’t unfamiliar with viewing mountains, but they weren’t quite up to speed when it came time to play a team that doesn’t even take the time to use a space between nouns and verbs in its name. The Kelso boys basketball team was outscored in every quarter, Thursday, in a 69-48 loss to Auburn Mountainview, to open its run in the T-Town Throwdown.
Bryar Iddings led Kelso with 15 points that included a quartet of 3-pointers, but the Scots couldn’t muster enough offense to keep pace with the unfamiliar Mountainview of Auburn.
It was Kelso’s second loss of the week after dropping a cross-Cowlitz River rivalry game against R.A. Long on Monday.
The Hilanders trailed by four points after one quarter and were looking up at a 35-25 hole at halftime. Sebastian Arius led the Lions with a game-high 30 points, while Lucas McClendon added 12 points.
A.J. Fabian scored nine points and grabbed five rebounds for Kelso, and Reece White added eight points in the loss.
Kelso will be back in action at Silas High School at 11 a.m. on Friday to play Foss in the T-Town Throwdown.