3A Boys Semifinals | Columbia River beat Bellevue, 52-51 in OT

TACOMA — Columbia River coach David Long scanned his players' faces to find all sorts of expressions of uncertainty and insecurity.

His Chieftains had not simply given up the lead. They had given away a certain victory in the most heartbreaking way imaginable, allowing an 11-point lead over Bellevue to evaporate in just 52 seconds.

"You look in their eyes, and they're done," Long said.

In the team huddle before overtime, senior Zack Bjork remembers Long saying, "We've gone all this way. Why stop now?"

And when it appeared all momentum had jumped ship to Bellevue, Columbia River came back to pull off its second upset in as many days, 52-51 in the Class 3A boys basketball semifinal Friday night.

The unranked Chieftains (22-6) from Vancouver, who had to win two loser-out games simply to qualify for the tournament, won on Bjork's baseline runner with 16.3 seconds left in overtime.

"I was just trying to draw a foul," Bjork said. "I just tossed it up there, and it went in. I can't say it was high-percentage."

Bellevue junior Aaron Bright, the ignition in Bellevue's comeback, missed a three-point attempt before the overtime buzzer.

And so tonight at 9, it will be Columbia River, not second-ranked Bellevue, facing top-ranked Franklin in the championship game.

"That's scary for tomorrow," Long said. "But at least there is a tomorrow."

When Columbia River's giant center, 6-foot-10 senior Steven Bjornstad, slammed home a monstrous dunk with more than a minute left, the Wolverines' title run looked all but over.

The Chieftains led 41-31 and Bellevue — one of the state's highest-scoring teams — had only 11 points in the second half, flustered by a tightly called game and the Chieftains' slow, deliberate pace. That same, dawdling style allowed Columbia River to beat Rainier Beach the night before.

"We don't play like this every night, because that's not fun to watch," Long said. "But when it's athlete for athlete, you've seen my guys. We're not quick, we're not great leapers, we're not strong ... so we have to do something different."

The Columbia River lead was 42-31 with 52 seconds left, when Bright hit the first of two three-pointers in a eight-second span. Then a pair of Columbia River turnovers became two more Bellevue baskets, and it was 42-41.

"I just kept telling them that this game was far from over," Wolverines coach Chris O'Connor said he told his players.

After Bjornstad — shooting 18 of 22 from the field in the tournament — made two free throws, the Wolverines found forward Matt Olson on a designed play, and Olson sank a three-pointer with four seconds left.

Bellevue (25-3) took the lead in overtime with 38 seconds left, when a Colton Christian steal led to a layup for Bright, who finished with 21 points. But the Chieftains beat Bellevue's pressure and found Bjork for the final blow to Bellevue's championship hopes.

"In the locker room, it was just silent," Bright said. "Our expectations were so high this year."

BELLEVUE — Aaron Bright 8-26 1-2 21, Alex Schrempf 5-13 6-9 16, Colton Christian 3-9 0-5 6, Matt Olson 2-6, 0-0 6, Alex Locke 1-3 0-0 2, Peter Nguyen 0-1 0-0 0, Hardy Mowe 0-2 0-0 0, Cam Warren 0-1 0-0 0, Derrick Fields 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 19-61 7-16 51.

COLUMBIA RIVER — Steven Bjornstad 6-7 7-11 19, Kyle Thurston 6-12 4-7 18, Zack Bjork 2-5, 3-6 7, Kyle Legato 2-6 0-0 4, Kramer Ramberg 1-2 1-2 4, Connar Oberst 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 17-32 15-26 52.

Bellevue	11	9	7	17	7	—	51
Columbia River	12	8	8	16	8	—	52

Three-point shooting — Bellevue 6-25 (Bright 4-15); Columbia River 3-7 (Thurston 2-5). Rebounds — Bellevue 36 (Schrempf 10); Columbia River 41 (Bjornstad 12). Assists — Bellevue 10 (Christian 3); Columbia River 8 (Bjork 4). Steals — Bellevue 11 (Bright 3); Columbia River 4 (Thurston 2). Blocked shots — Bellevue 3 (Christian, Olson, Locke); Columbia River 3 (Bjornstad 3). Fouled out — Warren.