Day one started out with LC and Cashmere squaring off. LC came in as the presumed favorite against the "hot" Cashmere team. Cashmere hung fairly close throughout but were ice cold from the field, shooting just 26 percent from the field. LC was just too good for them to overcome with the cold shooting. Next up was King's against Granger. King's used their height advantage and pressing style to just run away from Granger from the opening tip. This was the beginning of a great run by the young King's team. Toledo and Okanogan both 1 loss teams were up next. Okanogan went toe to toe with Toledo throughout the 1st half leading most of the way while containing Toledo's big 2. Toledo was aided by the little sweet shooting sophomore and a half time buzzer beater to gain momentum at the half. In the 2nd half we really got our first look at that in your face defense that they used to win the tournament holding Okanogan to 29 percent shooting for the game. Seattle Academy and Cedar Park finished off day one. These two teams battled until halftime with Academy taking a 1 point lead. But Cedar Park came out and blitzed them 23-2 to open it up. Academy went ice cold in the 3rd quarter and couldn't recover.
Cashmere and Granger were in the first loser out game. Boyd shook off his frigid shooting day one performance to score 24 points showing what he was capable with. It's too bad we couldn't see Zillah in the elite 8 but Granger looked outmatched in the 2 games. Left many to wonder if it really was a down year for District 5. Okanogan and Seattle Academy squared off next. Again Academy hung with Okanogan during the 1st half trailing by one. Justin Rivas took over in the 3rd quarter scoring 13 of his 20 points. Academy was sent home packing. In the 1st semi final Lynden Christian battle King's. King's came out with their pressing style that looked to really frustrate the Lyncs. They went back and forth throughout the game but turnovers and cold second half shooting eventually doomed the Lyncs. Caleb Taylor's 15 2nd half points helped propel King's to the final. Cedar Park and Toledo finshed out day 2. Cedar Park looked to matchup well with Toledo during the first half. Both teams played great defense and hit shots when they needed to. I'm not sure what Coach Merzioan says to his team at halftime but for the 2nd day in a row they came out after halftime and just locked down Cedar Park holding them to zero points in the 3rd quarter. Cedar Park made a couple comebacks in the 4th but Toledo always answered when they cut the lead to 4. Toledo advances to the final
The 4th/6th matchup was Okanogan against Cashmere. It was the rubber match with both teams winning one previous contest against each other. Again the 1st half of this game was close. After halftime Cashmere appeared to have the upper hand going into the 4th quarter but Okanogan battled back and finally took the lead for good with under a minute to play. Jim Townsend seemed to be too much for Cashmere scoring 18 pulling down 12 boards. The 3rd/5th game was Cedar Park against Lynden Christian. Cedar Park really impressed with their defense. They were an athletic team and forced a lot of turnovers. Schoulten led the way for Cedar Park with 21 points, 7 rebounds and 6 steals. I was surprised Lynden Christian not only lost 1 but 2 games. Just shows how much parity there was in this tournament. The title game featured King's vs Toledo. King's came out with their trapping style and it looked to really frustrate Toledo. It forced them into many turnovers. King's had the lead until the mid 2nd quarter. All along though Toledo's in your face defense kept them within striking distance. That defense actually held King's without a field goal mid 2nd quarter to mid 3rd quarter. 6'7" Brennan Rakoz really helped beat the trap when he was able to handle the ball and pass over the top of guys. I noticed King's never really had any open looks when they were on offense. Toledo went on to win the state championship 38-27
I really think the best team won the tournament. They are very well coached and the 2nd half adjustment he made in all 3 games were remarkable. It really was a pleasure watching that defense for 3 games. Rumor around the dome this week was that Merzoian could possibly step down as coach. Not sure the truth to that but I guess there's not a better time than after getting the gold ball. Congrats Toledo!
Cashmere and Granger were in the first loser out game. Boyd shook off his frigid shooting day one performance to score 24 points showing what he was capable with. It's too bad we couldn't see Zillah in the elite 8 but Granger looked outmatched in the 2 games. Left many to wonder if it really was a down year for District 5. Okanogan and Seattle Academy squared off next. Again Academy hung with Okanogan during the 1st half trailing by one. Justin Rivas took over in the 3rd quarter scoring 13 of his 20 points. Academy was sent home packing. In the 1st semi final Lynden Christian battle King's. King's came out with their pressing style that looked to really frustrate the Lyncs. They went back and forth throughout the game but turnovers and cold second half shooting eventually doomed the Lyncs. Caleb Taylor's 15 2nd half points helped propel King's to the final. Cedar Park and Toledo finshed out day 2. Cedar Park looked to matchup well with Toledo during the first half. Both teams played great defense and hit shots when they needed to. I'm not sure what Coach Merzioan says to his team at halftime but for the 2nd day in a row they came out after halftime and just locked down Cedar Park holding them to zero points in the 3rd quarter. Cedar Park made a couple comebacks in the 4th but Toledo always answered when they cut the lead to 4. Toledo advances to the final
The 4th/6th matchup was Okanogan against Cashmere. It was the rubber match with both teams winning one previous contest against each other. Again the 1st half of this game was close. After halftime Cashmere appeared to have the upper hand going into the 4th quarter but Okanogan battled back and finally took the lead for good with under a minute to play. Jim Townsend seemed to be too much for Cashmere scoring 18 pulling down 12 boards. The 3rd/5th game was Cedar Park against Lynden Christian. Cedar Park really impressed with their defense. They were an athletic team and forced a lot of turnovers. Schoulten led the way for Cedar Park with 21 points, 7 rebounds and 6 steals. I was surprised Lynden Christian not only lost 1 but 2 games. Just shows how much parity there was in this tournament. The title game featured King's vs Toledo. King's came out with their trapping style and it looked to really frustrate Toledo. It forced them into many turnovers. King's had the lead until the mid 2nd quarter. All along though Toledo's in your face defense kept them within striking distance. That defense actually held King's without a field goal mid 2nd quarter to mid 3rd quarter. 6'7" Brennan Rakoz really helped beat the trap when he was able to handle the ball and pass over the top of guys. I noticed King's never really had any open looks when they were on offense. Toledo went on to win the state championship 38-27
I really think the best team won the tournament. They are very well coached and the 2nd half adjustment he made in all 3 games were remarkable. It really was a pleasure watching that defense for 3 games. Rumor around the dome this week was that Merzoian could possibly step down as coach. Not sure the truth to that but I guess there's not a better time than after getting the gold ball. Congrats Toledo!