ROCHESTER — The first half was far from pretty for Napavine on Wednesday. The Tigers struggled on the offensive end of the floor, shooting less than 30% from the field, and they had turned the ball over nine times on that end.
Napavine was still able to enter the locker room in a good state, though, as its defense had been dominant over the first 16 minutes.
“The ball’s not always gonna go in the hoop like you’d like,” Napavine coach Kayden Kelly said. “Sometimes your defense is gonna have to step up and do some things.”
The defense continued to dominate after the break, the offense found its rhythm, and the Tigers rolled to a comfortable 55-32 victory over Forks in a 2B District 4 Quarterfinal in Rochester.
After allowing just nine points in the first quarter, Napavine allowed just five points in the third and three in third.
Across those two frames, the Tigers had held Forks to a mark of just 3 for 22 (13.6%) from the field and forced 15 turnovers.
The final tallies weren’t much different. By the end of the night, Napavine had forced 26 turnovers and held Forks to a mark of just 23.4% from the field.
“It came just from working and picking each other up,” Kelly said. “Not necessarily going for steals, just playing good defense. That’s where I would like us to get with our defense all the time. If they play like that, it’s gonna be hard to score.”
On the offensive end, Napavine scored the first 17 points of the second half to pull away.
Hudson Chambers, Cal Bullock, and Eric Bullock all hit from the floor in the opening minutes before a Chambers three, then Layton Griffith added seven straight points after hitting a free throw earlier in the run.
“We thought that we could get by defenders by dribbling a little more than we were,” Kelly said. “We spaced out and left the lane open so we could drive … We opened some things up, and it seemed to benefit us in the long run.”
Griffith finished with a team-high 14 points along with six rebounds and two blocks, while Chambers ended the night with 10 points, seven rebounds, three assists, and a pair of steals.
Both Cal Bullock and Eric Bullock scored nine points, and Tyce Vigre tallied seven points, five rebounds, four steals, and three assists. Grady Wilson, Tyler Watson, and Matthew Watson added two points each.
With the win, the Tigers (18-4) are back in the district semifinals. They will play Adna, who defeated Rainier in another quarterfinal on Wednesday.
Instead of the usual trek south to Kelso, the Tigers and Pirates will meet at W.F. West next Wednesday, Feb. 18. The other semifinal, Toledo and Ilwaco, will also be in Chehalis on the same night.
A win would send Napavine back to the district title game for the second time in three years, while a loss would leave the Tigers needing to win an elimination game to earn their third straight trip to the state tournament.
“It’s gonna be a great environment,” Kelly said. “We’re going to be super excited. We got a week to get ready, so we can’t wait to get to the grindstone and get prepared.”
