Tied with 8.7 seconds left in overtime, Morton-White Pass coach Chad Cramer drew up a play, junior Gary Dotson got the ball in the lane and drilled the game-winning shot with one second left to give the Timberwolves a 58-56 win over visiting Rainier Wednesday in Morton.
It was just another night for the Timberwolves, who seem to attract exciting, down-to-the-last-second games. The T-Wolves have played in two triple overtimes, a single overtime and has been a part of two buzzer-beating finishes, one for and one against them.
On Wednesday, it seemed like they might get run out of their own building in the first three quarters, with Rainier busting off a big run to end the first half and taking a 28-19 lead going into the locker room.
MWP didn’t regain momentum until the fourth quarter, where it trailed by 12. The T-Wolves switched up their defense and held the Mountaineers to just six points in the fourth quarter to send it to overtime.
“Our first three quarters looked like our practice last night,” Cramer said. “It had to have been our worst practice of the year. It took us a while to find our footing. A good team can win when they don’t have their best stuff. They kept battling.”
Senior Tyler Blake led the Timberwolves with 17 points, while Layten Collette added 14, Dotson had 12 and Kysen Collette chipped in nine.
Jake Jeske led Rainier with 23 points.
MWP (5-7, 5-4 league) travels to Cathlamet to take on Wahkiakum in a non-league match on Thursday.
Rainier (5-7, 2-7 league) travels to Clatskanie for a non-league game on Thursday.
Napavine senior Laythan Demarest erupted for eight 3-pointers and finished with a game-high 26 points as the Tigers took care of a shorthanded Winlock team, 76-38, at home on senior night Wednesday.
“We wanted to come out and put pressure on their guards, and we were able to do that,” Napavine coach Rex Stanley said. “Laythan, Cael (Stanley) and Gavin (Parker) set the tone early with their pressure.”
The Tigers scored 18 points off turnovers against a Winlock team that was playing with just three varsity guys and a slew of JV kids.
“We were very shorthanded and called on some JV guys to step up,” Winlock coach Nick Bamer said. “Very proud of their effort. They gave us everything they had. We packed it in on them and Demarest killed us.”
Cade Evander added 15 points and nine rebounds for the Tigers, while Keith Olson had 12 points and Stanley chipped in 10 points and eight boards.
Napavine’s two seniors, Demarest and Evander, were honored before the game.
“It was senior night, so it was nice to see them play their last home game and get a win,” Stanley said.
Napavine (10-3, 6-3 league) is off until the district tournament Monday. Winlock (3-8, 2-7 league) travels to Adna on Friday for its regular-season finale.”
Toutle Lake freshman Zach Swanson dropped a game-high 26 points as Toledo kept it close in the fourth but couldn’t overcome the Ducks in a 64-57 road loss Wednesday in Toutle.
Toledo went up 6-4 early and then trailed the rest of the way, 17-9 at the end of one, by 10 at the half and by 11 entering the fourth quarter.
“We made some shots but couldn’t close it out,” Toledo coach Grady Fallon said. “Once we cut it to three, they’d make a bucket and keep it out of our reach. I’m proud of our guys. It was one of our best games this season.”
Do-it-all senior Carlo Arceo-Hansen led the Indians with 19 points and six assists while hitting 6-of-9 free throws.
Sophomore Jake Cournyer added 11 points, Carson Olmstead eight and Jesse Towns seven.
“The team stepped up,” Fallon said.
Toledo (7-4, 5-4 league) is off until the district playoffs on Monday.
