It wasn’t pretty.
But Kentwood’s Tre Tyler and Henry Everette made certain Wednesday night’s loser-out West Central District III boys basketball game at Foss High in Tacoma ended on the perfect note for the Conquerors.
With the game tied 44-44, Tyler dished off to Everette, who streaked past two Lincoln defenders and then kissed the ball off glass for the game-winning layup with 5.9 seconds remaining.
Lincoln guard Shane Staggs’ 3-pointer as time expired just seconds later rimmed off, sending the Conquerors into a celebratory frenzy on the court.
“It was a pretty (game) because we won,” said Kentwood coach Michael Angelidis. “But it was not a fan-friendly (game), it was not aesthetic or a technically-sound game.
“(But) we’ll take it because we’re alive.”
With the win, Kentwood (19-6) advances to Friday’s winner-to-state, loser-out showdown against crosstown rival Kentridge (15-9) slated for 8 p.m. at Auburn High. The winner will take the district’s No. 4 seed to the state playoffs, which begins Wednesday at the Tacoma Dome.
Kentwood and Kentridge split a pair of games this season.
But the Conquerors would not have advanced if it wasn’t for the Tyler-to-Everette connection with just seconds remaining.
In a game that Kentwood turned the ball over 18 times and struggled mightily against the Abes’ full-court press throughout, the final play for the Conquerors proved to be a thing of beauty.
After a Lincoln timeout with 1:06 remaining, Kentwood took the in-bounds pass and proceeded to use a minute of the clock before Tyler found Everette cutting to the hoop.
“We knew they were laying off (on defense),” said Tyler, who finished with a game-high 15 points. “So we just let the clock tick down. When it got to 12 seconds, I came off (Josh Smith’s) screen at the top and saw Henry open. I gave it to him and he made a good play.”
It was Everette’s second bucket of the game, but couldn’t have come at a more opportune time.
“I just wanted to make sure I took care of the ball and that we had the last bucket,” he said. “It felt nice.”
In a game that lacked any offensive tempo, neither team was able to gain control throughout. Lincoln spent the entire 32 minutes double-teaming Kentwood’s Smith and putting on a frantic full-court press. The result was Smith, Kentwood’s 6-foot-9, 285-pound center who averages 25.6 points per game, scoring a season-low 10 points. He did grab 14 rebounds and block four shots, but converted on just three field goals and seldom received the ball down low in the paint without having at least two Lincoln defenders draped on his back.
It appeared the Conquerors were finally finding their rhythm late in the third quarter, when Tyler drained a transition 3-pointer from the top of the key, giving Kentwood its biggest advantage at 35-29.
But as it did all night, Lincoln responded with a 5-1 run to tie the game, 36-36.
The game included nine lead changes and six ties. Lincoln’s biggest lead was two points, 29-27, with two minutes remaining in the third quarter.
Lincoln’s suffocating, keep-Smith-from-getting-the-ball defense kept Kentwood from finding any set offense most of the night.
“We like the no-tempo games,” Angelidis deadpanned.
That is, when they win.
And Wednesday night, Tyler and Everette made sure that would be the case.
“I think Tre made a great decision and Henry made a great play … and we survived it,” Angelidis said.
Which is pretty enough for the Conquerors.
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