10 Best: Skyline Spartans vs. Bothell Cougars
Thanks to a huge fourth quarter by a standout junior and a big first half by another junior, Bothell won its first KingCo 4A tournament title since the early 80’s with a 54-42 victory over Skyline Thursday night. Skyline kept…
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Continue ReadingThanks to a huge fourth quarter by a standout junior and a big first half by another junior, Bothell won its first KingCo 4A tournament title since the early 80’s with a 54-42 victory over Skyline Thursday night. Skyline kept the game close and took its first lead of the game seconds into the fourth quarter, but the Cougars rallied with a 9-0 run of their own to begin to pull away from Skyline and clinch the title and a berth in next week’s regional round of the state tournament.
MVP: Cameron Tyson. The 6-foot-2 guard was held in check early but exploded for 17 of his game-high 24 points in the fourth quarter to help Bothell begin to put some distance between itself and Skyline. Tyson added six rebounds and three steals for Bothell as the junior was seemingly all over the floor for the Cougars.
Play of the game: After a 9-0 run, Skyline started creeping back on the Cougars. But Cameron Tyson put an end to than with a clutch 3-pointer that seized momentum for Bothell and the Cougars never looked back.
Best offensive performance: Cameron Tyson‘s fourth quarter. Tyson was the difference maker and the spark Bothell needed late to put a swift end to Skyline’s rally and clinch the victory and KingCo title.
Best defensive performance: While Tyson led the team in scoring, fellow junior Jake Medjo added 20 points while leading the Cougars with eight rebounds, a pair of steals and a block. The big man had a monster first half as Bothell continuously fed the 6-foot-8 Medjo down low. He showed good feet and a soft touch near the basket.
Best guy off the bench: While Izaiah Clark didn’t light up the scoreboard for Bothell – the senior finished with four points – the 6-foot-4 guard showed a quickness and athleticism that Skyline struggled to match. A couple tough foul calls limited Clark’s game somewhat against the Spartans, but he made a couple beautiful drives into the lane that resulted in baskets or free throw attempts.
Best intangibles: Matthew Cindric quickly became a crowd favorite at the KingCo title game at Lake Washington High School. The big man dove to the floor after loose balls and shot wide-open 3-pointers – much to the delight of the crowd – while holding his own against Medjo. Cindric came off the bench and was able to slow down Medjo in the second half. The 6-foot-4 junior netted five points and grabbed five rebounds of his own as he helped Skyline keep the game close.
Best under-the-radar performance: Skyline’s Ben Smith held his own against an athletic Bothell team. The 6-foot-3 senior scored eight points and added a few rebounds, steals and a couple assists to fill out the stat sheet for the Spartans.
Best underclassman: Both teams played only juniors and seniors so we’ll take the time to highlight Skyline junior Freddy Jarvis, who led the Spartans with seven rebounds. The 6-foot-5 post was instrumental in trying to offset Medjo’s work for Bothell.
Best sharpshooter: Skyline’s Kellan Przybylski led his team with 18 points – with 12 of those coming from behind the 3-point arc. The 6-foot-2 senior point guard quickly established himself as one of Skyline’s top scoring weapons with 10 points in the first half, and proved he could drive to the lane and draw the foul if needed as well.
Best vengeance/What’s next: The two teams split their matchups in the regular season with Skyline winning the most recent contest prior to Thursday night by 21. Bothell got its revenge in the closest game of the season between the two teams. Next up for the Cougars is the regional round of the state tournament next weekend. Skyline can join Bothell with a win over Inglemoor in a winner-to-regionals, loser-out game Saturday night.