Taking another league matchup on the road, this time against Hoquiam, the Tenino boys basketball team weathered an early barrage from the Grizzlies in a 62-47 win Friday night in Grays Harbor.
The Grizzlies got out and running early, scoring 25 points in the opening quarter thanks to 18 early points from leading scorer Michael Lorton-Watkins. After that, the Beavers made a couple of defensive adjustments, and held Hoquiam to just 22 points over the next three frames in what turned into a big 1A Evergreen league victory.
“We really picked it up,” Beavers coach Ryan Robertson said. “Give a lot of credit to Noah (Schow), he guarded Watkins and bothered him with his length. Brody Noonan was also terrific on help defense.”
Schow and Noonan led a defensive charge that held that Grizzlies to just 34% shooting, and Lorton-Watkins had just four points over the final three quarters after his early barrage.
On the offensive end, Schow added a game-high 33 points, picking up steam as the game went along, and Will Feltus had a huge stretch in the fourth quarter that put the game away late.
Feltus scored 11, with a layup in transition, a dime pass to Schow for another lay-in, and a clutch 3-pointer in the fourth that effectively iced the game.
Austin Gonia added nine points and 10 boards, as well.
“You love his calm presence,” Robertson said of Feltus. “Nothing phases him. He’s always in control, which is what you need. He’s a solid defender and he makes plays when you need him to.”
It’s a huge win for a Tenino squad that has big aspirations with a young team that’s beginning to click after losing some key pieces to injury earlier in the year. Still without big man Jack Burkhardt, Robertson said his team has adjusted to new roles just in time for the biggest games of the season in league play.
And with just five teams in the 1A Evergreen, every league game is absolutely huge for the standings.
“To come on the road and beat them like that, that's a big testament to our toughness,” Robertson said. “It feels like we’re starting to become a real team and a family. We didn’t speak the same basketball language earlier this year with it being my first year, and we’re starting to come together. We’re a young team and we have had to go through growing pains, but we kept playing and that's what I like to see.”
The Beavers finally return to Brock Court in Tenino Saturday against Stevenson for their next game.
