Consolation Games: Jackson knocks off Inglemoor for 1st state trophy

TACOMA — Jackson boys coach Steve Johnson gripped the fifth-place trophy tightly, and with good reason since it's the first state-basketball hardware for the Mill Creek school that opened in 1993.

The Timberwolves earned it Saturday, the final day of the Class 4A state tournament, by beating No. 2 Inglemoor 62-54 at the Tacoma Dome.

If they gave an award for most improved team, Jackson might have gone home with that trophy, too. The Timberwolves were 6-14 last year and finished this year 24-5.

"That says a lot about their resiliency," fourth-year coach Johnson of his players.

Senior Drew Eisinger led Jackson with 21 points, and junior Brian Rucker scored 17.

The game see-sawed to halftime, when Inglemoor led 27-26. Jackson went ahead in the third quarter, but Inglemoor senior Nate Shekeryk tied the score at 35 with 2:22 left in the period. Then Jake Gelakoska scored for Jackson and the Timberwolves steadily pulled away.

Senior guard Ike Nwaelele led Inglemoor with 16 points, and sophomore Mark McLaughlin scored 13.

Inglemoor (23-4) got the eighth-place trophy after winning fifth place last year. Four starters from last year's team graduated.

"Today's game — give credit to Jackson, that was two tired basketball teams," said Inglemoor coach Greg Lowell, whose team's tired legs were reflected in 1-for-22 shooting from three-point range. "We played as hard as we could play."

What is even more impressive to some basketball analysts than the Vikings' back-to-back state placements is that the team has won two straight KingCo titles. In a league with Garfield, Franklin and Roosevelt, that is considered no small accomplishment.

"I'm the luckiest guy in the world," Lowell said. "These kids are so much fun to be around."

South Kitsap 77, Curtis 76

(Third, sixth places)

Plenty of people expected South Kitsap and Curtis to face off Saturday, they just didn't think it would be at 3:30 in the afternoon for third and sixth places.

And while both teams were disappointed with their losses Friday, they came out and put on a good show Saturday, with top-ranked South Kitsap edging the fourth-ranked Vikings of University Place.

"Obviously the disappointment of last night was huge," said South Kitsap coach John Callaghan. "I thought it very well could have been us and Curtis tonight."

Instead, it was South Kitsap and Curtis in a matinee that had plenty of excitement.

After the teams went back and forth in the fourth, Tysaiah Curry put the Wolves (27-2) ahead for good on a layup with eight seconds to play. On the possession before, LP Neloms pulled the Wolves to one point down on three-pointer with 22 seconds left.

South Kitsap got the ball back for the winning layup when the ball was stolen from Isaiah Thomas of Curtis (25-4). Both he and his coaches complained to the officials that he was fouled on the play.

As he has been all tournament, the 5-foot-9 Thomas was spectacular, leading all scorers with 33 points. The junior point guard had a shot at a game-winner after dribbling the length of the floor, but missed an off-balance three as the buzzer went off.

John Boyle

Mount Tahoma 38, Gig Harbor 37

(Fourth, seventh places)

In a game that featured two of the state's top sophomores, Mount Tahoma (20-8) came from behind to win the fourth-place trophy.

Patrick McCollum, a 6-2 forward, scored 22 points and finished the tournament averaging 23.2.

Clarence Trent, a 6-8 sophomore for Gig Harbor, had a quieter game with eight points and eight rebounds. Trent had made headlines for his 19 points and 11 rebounds in the Tides' upset of Inglemoor on Day 1. He averaged 11.5 points and 8.5 rebounds for the tournament.

Gig Harbor (21-8) jumped to an 11-0 lead and was up 24-14 at halftime but was held to single-digit scoring in the final two quarters.

The game came down to the final Gig Harbor possession and appeared decided when McCollum intercepted a pass with four seconds to play. After two fouls stopped play, Gig Harbor's T.J. Nettles then got possession in the final second on a tipped inbounds pass and got off a shot that missed.

John Boyle