Hoquiam swept the season series with Aberdeen as we review recent Twin Harbors boys prep basketball games.
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BOYS PREP BASKETBALL
Hoquiam 68, Aberdeen 59
Hoquiam got a balanced scoring effort en route to a 68-59 win over Aberdeen on Saturday at Aberdeen High School.
The Grizzlies (10-9) had five different scorers in the first quarter to jump out to a 23-13 lead on the Bobcats (8-9) and held Aberdeen to 10 points in the second quarter to lead by 14 at halftime.
Behind a big third quarter from Bobcats senior guard Jhacob Quezada (12 points) and an impressive fourth-quarter performance from senior guard Isaac Garcia (11 pts.) the Bobcats cut into the Grizzlies lead, but it wasn’t enough as Hoquiam held on for the win.
Hoquiam had one of its better shooting performances as a team this season. The Grizzlies shot 52% from the field, including a blistering 17 of 25 from inside the arc (68%), and made 13-of-22 free throws (59%).
Standout junior guard Lincoln Niemi led the way for Hoquiam with a game-high 23 points – 14 in the second half – to go along with nine rebounds, five assists and two steals.
Senior Joey Bozich (12 pts., 9 reb., 3 ast.) and freshman K.J. McCoy (13 pts., 7 reb., 3 stl., 2 ast.) also scored in double figures while Hoquiam hybrid guard/forward Ethan Byron filled the stat sheet with seven points, four rebounds, three assists and a block.
PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM Hoquiam’s Joey Bozich (left) and K.J. McCoy (right) compete for a rebound against Aberdeen’s Ben Birch during the Grizzlies’ 68-59 victory on Saturday in Aberdeen.
“We’ve really been playing pretty well, offensively, and that’s really great to see at the end of the year,” Hoquiam head coach Jeff Niemi said. “We’ve had way more guys in the scoring column, so that’s great.”
Aberdeen was led by Quezada (18 pts., 2 reb.) and Garcia (17 pts., 8 reb., 3 stl.) and got six points from senior guard Ryker Scott in his first game back from injury.
The Bobcats shot 40% from the floor (23-57 FG) and 7-of-12 from the free-throw line (58%).
Aberdeen shot 2 of 12 from 3-point range (17%), a key stat according to Coach Niemi.
“We were kind of telling the kids that if (Aberdeen) can beat you from mid-range when we have a 14-point lead at half, then hat’s off to them. But don’t let them beat you from three because we know Jhacob, Isaac and those guys can really shoot.”
PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM Aberdeen’s Jhacob Quezada (23) scored a team-high 18 points in a 68-59 loss to Hoquiam on Saturday in Aberdeen.
Hoquiam held a 38-33 rebounding advantage while Aberdeen committed just 10 turnovers to 17 for the Grizzlies.
Trying to get healthy after dealing with a rash of injuries to key players the past few weeks, Aberdeen will look to snap a six-game skid when it faces Tumwater at 7 p.m. on Tuesday in Tumwater.
Hoquiam will look to win for the third-straight game when it hosts Elma in a key 1A Evergreen League matchup at 6:45 p.m. on Wednesday.
PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM Hoquiam’s Lincoln Niemi scored a game-high 23 points in a 68-59 victory over Aberdeen on Saturday at Aberdeen High School.
Hoquiam 23 14 14 17 – 68
Aberdeen 13 10 18 18 – 59
Scoring: Hoquiam – Niemi 23, McCoy 13, Bozich 12, Maxfield 8, Byron 7, Abbott 3, Johnson 2. Aberdeen – Quezada 18, Garcia 17, Raya 7, Scott 6, Matthews 6, Carroll 3, Howard 2.
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Montesano 64, Rochester 41
Monte remained in the running for the 1A Evergreen League’s top spot with a 64-41 victory over Rochester on Friday at Rochester High School.
The Bulldogs (13-5 overall, 6-1 1A Evergreen) opened up a 33-22 lead by halftime over the Warriors (2-16, 2-4) and, led by 15 points in the second half from senior forward Mason Fry, outscored Rochester 41-20 over the final two periods of the game.
Fry (22 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals, assist), junior post Caden Grubb (17 pts., 15 reb., stl.) and guard Ryan Weidman (14 pts., 5 reb., 7 stl., 5 ast.) led the way for the Bulldogs, which shot 52% from the field (22-42 FG) and went 14 of 23 from the charity stripe (61%).
Despite the seemingly easy victory, Monte head coach Shaydon Farmer said there was still much to clean up as his team committed 26 turnovers in the game.
“Rochester definitely got a lot more comfortable than we wanted them to be, and it showed with their energy. We threw a lot of very lazy passes that led to them getting easy buckets. Too many lazy passes, too many possessions not ending in a box out, too much space left on defense,” he said. “That being said, we still did a lot of things well enough to come out and win by 20-plus points. I’m glad to get out of there and escape a potential trap game.”
Monte hosts Cedar Park Christian (Bothell) in a non-league matchup at 6 p.m. on Monday.
Montesano 11 22 23 18 – 64
Rochester 8 14 12 8 – 41
Scoring: Montesano – Fry 22, Ca. Grubb 17, Weidman 14, Painter 5, A. Bruland 2, Williamsen 2, Dowler 2. Rochester – Canales 12, Mancuso 9, Hines 8, Knutson 5, Driver 2, Tornquist 2.
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Willapa Valley 62, Taholah 43
Willapa Valley secured the 1B Coastal League title with a 62-43 win over Taholah on Friday at Willapa Valley High School.
The Vikings (14-5, 7-0 1B Coastal) celebrated Senior Night by racing out to an 11-point lead after one quarter and outscored the Chitwhins (11-6, 5-3) 19-12 in the final frame to secure the victory.
“I’m really proud of our team. This win secured the league title, which was the first goal of our season,” Valley head coach Derek Rask said. “Taholah is young and athletic, and I thought we did a really nice job of taking away their strengths. This was one of our most complete games in all phases.”
Valley was led by junior point guard Lucas Lusk (18 pts., 5 ast.) and junior forward Brody Aust (15 pts.) and honored seniors J.B. Russell (15 pts., 9 reb.), Blane King (12 pts.), Cody Mican, Josh Price and Brody Ritzman on Senior Night.
“They have been excellent contributors to our program and will continue their efforts as we move into the playoffs,” Rask said.
Valley can complete an undefeated league record when it faces Ocosta at 7:30 p.m. on Friday in Westport.
Taholah 6 13 12 12 – 43
Willapa Valley 17 16 10 19 – 62
Scoring: Willapa Valley – Lusk 18, Aust 15, Russell 15, King 12, Jarvis 2.
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Raymond-South Bend 56, Chief Leschi 48
Raymond-South Bend dominated the fourth quarter to earn a 56-48 2B Pacific League victory over Chief Leschi on Friday at South Bend High School.
The Ravens (9-10, 4-3 2B Pacific) trailed by as much as six points in the final period of play against the Warriors (2-16, 0-7) but rallied to win the game.
RSB was led by senior Juan Martinez with 14 points, five rebounds, three steals and an assist.
“Juan Sanchez Martinez played very well getting us some much needed buckets,” Ravens head coach Jon Schray said.
Seniors Carson Ridderbush (10 points, 3 rebounds, assist) and Aaron Somero (10 pts., 12 reb., 4 blocks, 3 ast., steal) also scored in double figures for RSB.
The Ravens shot 38% from the field on 21-of-55 shooting and made 13-of-19 free throws (68%).
Led by Somero and senior Ray Skoubo (7 rebounds), the Ravens had 40 rebounds as a team (14 offensive), 15 assists and 21 turnovers as a team.
The Ravens host Ilwaco in the regular-season finale at 7:15 p.m. on Monday at Raymond High School.
Raymond-South Bend 19 5 20 12 – 56
Chief Leschi 20 10 14 4 – 48
Scoring: RSB – Martinez 14, Ridderbush 10, Somero 10, Silva 9, Banker 7, Skoubo 2, Mora 2, Schray 2.
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Hoquiam 76, Tenino 52
Hoquiam had a nice bounce-back game with a 76-52 win over Tenino on Friday at Hoquiam High School.
One game removed from a tough overtime 1A Evergreen League loss to Montesano, the Grizzlies (9-9, 3-3 1A Evergreen) responded with a balanced offense in a key win over the Beavers (3-17, 0-7).
Hoquiam took control of the game early with a 27-7 first quarter as five different Grizzlies scored in the frame, led by senior Joey Bozich’s eight points.
Leading 43-20 at the half, Hoquiam’s offense continued to roll with a 26-16 third quarter, allowing head coach Jeff Niemi to empty his bench in the fourth quarter.
Hoquiam had nine players score in the game, with six players scoring seven points or more.
Bozich led the way with 17 points, seven rebounds and a four assists.
Freshman guard K.J. McCoy scored 16 points while Ethan Byron (9 points, 9 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 assists) and Lincoln Niemi (9 pts., 6 ast., 4 reb.) scored nine points each for the Grizzlies.
Hoquiam shot 43% from the field on 27-of-63 shooting, including 9 of 26 from beyond the arc (35%), and made 13-of-18 free throws (72%).
The Grizzlies held a 41-35 rebounding advantage and had 16 turnovers to 22 for Tenino.
Tenino 7 13 16 16 – 52
Hoquiam 27 16 26 7 – 76
Scoring: Tenino – Noonan 11, Bennett 10, Czulegar 7, Borup 6, Whitman 5, Mathison 4, Johnson 3, R, Whitaker 2, Wachler 2, Nelson 2. Hoquiam – Bozich 17, McCoy 16, Byron 9, Niemi 9, Maxfield 8, Abbott 7, Bretz 4, Pullar 4, Carpenter 2.
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Pe Ell 63, Ocosta 52
Short-handed Ocosta lost a 1B Coastal League game to Pe Ell on Saturday at Ocosta High School in Westport.
The Wildcats (7-11) kept the within striking distance throughout the majority of the game against the Trojans (13-6), but without leading-scorer in sophomore standout post Sonny Beard, the Wildcats were unable to earn the victory.
“Tonight was a tough night for our guys. Playing short-handed with an already short bench, my guys put forth a pretty good effort, but a lack of execution offensively and defensively at different moments in the game was crucial,” Ocosta head coach Jason Quinby said. “We did a pretty good job for the most part against Pe Ell, but couldn’t find a way to stop (Blake) Nelson and (Wyatt) Harris from doing their thing offensively against us.”
Sophomore Bryce Bottleson led Ocosta with 19 points, four steals and two assists while sophomore Luis Solis (12 pts., 4 stl., 3 ast.) and junior Michael Priest (12 pts., 5 reb., 5 stl., 2 ast.) also scored in double figures for the Wildcats.
Ocosta had 15 rebounds, 15 steals and 15 turnovers as a team.
The Wildcats play at Naselle in a 1B Coastal League game at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
Pe Ell 12 18 14 19 – 63
Ocosta 14 12 11 15 – 52
Scoring: Pe Ell – Harris 20, Nelson 19, L. McGrath 5, Mason 4, Howard 4, Perkins 3, Edgar 2, Morales 2, D. McGrath 2. Ocosta – Bottleson 19, Solis 12, Priest 12, Ashby 6, Turner 4.
