The Kentridge boys basketball team fell 76-62 to Federal Way on Tuesday, Jan. 24 inside the Federal Way High School gymnasium.
The Chargers lost two of their last three for the first time all season.
“We made them play,” said Charger coach David Jamison. “I thought our attitude was good, they do a good job of getting you out of your game plan. But I thought my guys continually tried to do what we wanted to do.”
It was the ninth meeting between these schools since 2009, Federal Way has won all nine. The last time Kentridge beat Federal Way was Dec. 13, 2008. Most of the Charger roster was 4 years old when that happened.
Throughout the NPSL game Jamison didn’t think his team played poorly, but it was just a testament to the strength of Federal Way (17-1, 10-0 league), ranked No. 1 in the Jan. 18 Class 4A Associated Press poll.
“They’re a really good team, I thought we hung with them pretty well,” Jamison said.
Kentridge (14-4, 7-3), ranked No. 7, came into Federal Way ready to play, putting up its highest scoring quarter of the game. Even though the Chargers trailed, they were right in with the Eagles, who led 22-19.
In the second quarter Federal Way separated itself from the Chargers. A late run in the quarter propelled the Eagles to a 12-point halftime lead.
The third quarter was more of the same for the Chargers. An inability to slow down the Eagles hurt them in the long run.
“In our two losses we just got outshot. It’s not because of turnovers, defensive issues or rebounding. We just get outshot,” Jamison said.
The Chargers seemed to run out of gas in the fourth quarter. One of the possible reasons for that was standout junior Jamari Harris was sidelined with an ankle injury from the previous day’s practice. An injury that he hopes and Jamison expects him to have a short recovery.
When Harris is on the court the Chargers are a complete team and have beaten a top-ranked Class 4A team in Mount Si.
It’s the second Charger loss against the NPSL’s best throughout their toughest stretch of the schedule.
“After Mount Si, we had Tahoma immediately the next day and these guys a week later. It’s a really tough stretch,” Jamison said.
Kentridge now sits in third place in the NPSL standings. With three games remaining, the Chargers are locked into a playoff spot.
“I think we are right on par for where we need to be,” Jamison said.
The Chargers continue their roadtrip with games Jan. 27 and Feb. 2 and finish their regular season at home against Kentwood Feb. 4.
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