By Kiara Doyal, The Seattle Medium
The Garfield Bulldogs (18-7) faced off against the Mt. Spokane Wildcats (20-4) in a fast-paced, high intensity matchup, as they battled for placements in the next round of the State 3A Boys’s Basketball Championships next week at the Tacoma Dome.
Garfield junior Legend Smiley set the tone early with a quick jump shot seconds into the opening seconds of the quarter. However, the defending state champion Garfield Bulldogs found themselves matched by the speed and talent brought by Mt. Spokane.
Wildcat senior Ryan Lafferty was a pivotal playmaker, making strategic plays, assists, and getting some points of his own throughout the quarter. Lafferty and junior Nalu Vargas, gave the crowd a flawless series of three-point shots. However, Bulldog Ishe Kanhukamwe consistently responded and matched the Wildcats sharpshooters with two three-point shots of his own.
Both teams playing a strong defensive and offensive game, resulted in multiple shot clock violations. Despite the pressure of the clock, Smiley connected on a three-point shot seconds before the shot clock expired to bring the Bulldogs withing four points, at 19-23, in the final minute of the first quarter.
Garfield’s Dre Niko proved to be a powerful force on the boards. When Smiley missed a three-point attempt, Niko was right there to put it back in, bringing the score to 21-27 minutes into the second quarter.
As the defensive efforts heightened for both teams, so did the number of fouls that were called. Smiley would go to the free throw line twice and make all of his attempts.
Although Mt. Spokane faced several travel violations late on in the quarter, their momentum remained strong as they went into halftime leading 41-31.
The halftime break ignited the Wildcats even more, as Vargas opened the third quarter with two back-to-back three-pointer shots as they increased their lead to 47-31. Lafferty, who has helped carry his team the entire of the game, demonstrated his talents by stealing the ball from Smiley and setting his teammate senior Bode Gardner up for a two-point basket, resulting in a Garfield timeout.
After the timeout, Garfield was struggling to get the ball down the court without losing possession. However, Kanhukamwe secured a critical three-point shot, narrowing the gap of the score to 37-53. The Bulldogs were also facing a challenge with the Wildcats aggressive rebounding, which gave Mt. Spokane multiple opportunities to shoot and extend their lead with the additional shots.
Garfield’s Jamari Harris and Kanhukamwe combined for 5 points in the final minutes of the third quarter, as the Bulldogs reduced the deficit to 11 points going into the final quarter.
Harris would bring the gym to their feet with a smooth crossover to start the final quarter with renewed energy. The energy in the gym carried over to Smiley as he began to truly perform. Snatching the rebound off of a missed free throw by teammate Kanhukamwe, Smiley easily put it back in for two points.
The final quarter of play flew by as Vargas, Lafferty, and Gardner continued to work as a trio stretching out the Wildcats lead. With just over two minutes remaining and a 6-point deficit, the Bulldogs still worked to narrow the gap.
Despite the efforts from Harris, Kanhukamwe, and Smiley the defending state champions fell short to Mt. Spokane, losing 64-74.
“I am really proud of our kids and getting an opportunity to get the first round of state,” shared Mt. Spokane Head Coach David Wagenblast. “Garfield obviously being the defending state champs, are a really good team and so for our kids to execute really well I thought that we were ready to play and focused.”
With the win, Mt. Spokane will play the winner of the Todd Beamer and Mountlake Terrace matchup, on Thursday Feb. 29th at 10:30am. Garfield will play Arlington in a loser-out game Wednesday Feb. 28th at 9:00am at the Tacoma Dome.
Pictorial Highlights of Garfield vs Mt. Spokane
