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KENNEWICK -- Teams in the CBBN may have been able to ignore a young, down-on-its-luck Kamiakin boys basketball team at midseason.
But the Braves, winners of five of their last six games -- including a 48-29 Columbia Division win over Hanford on Friday in Kennewick -- are forcing their way back into the fray as, potentially, one of the conference's most dangerous teams.
But how is it that the Braves (10-8, 5-5) managed to corral their young talent into a cohesive team that could be one of the biggest threats in the 4A district tournament?
According to coach Brian Meneely, it's guard Jeremy Rojas, who kept Kamiakin on track all night with a steady head and a strong hand of leadership.
The 6-foot-1 senior scored just three points, but he dished out eight assists and pulled down eight rebounds as the Braves used runs of 11-2, 14-0 and 9-2 to finish a season sweep of Hanford (5-12, 1-9).
"His floor game was tremendous tonight," Meneely said. "Here's a senior playing with four sophomores, and he's kind of setting them up. Because of that, we're playing a very mature, well-rounded game."
Hanford made a strong opening statement, getting a pair of buckets in the first minute from Kyle Wagar and Pete Zachara to take a 4-0 lead. But Case Rada scored six points during an 11-2 run over the next 5:38 to take an 11-6 lead.
After hitting their first two baskets, the Falcons' shooting went from cold to frigid, as they hit just 5-of-19 for the rest of the half and then a putrid 1-for-11 in the third quarter. Overall, Hanford shot just 10-of-44 (23 percent) for the game.
"I thought we had a chance to win after a nice week of practice," said Falcons coach Paul Mayer. "That's the lowest point total I've seen in the 14 years I've been here.
"Overall, I was satisfied with our defense. If you give up 48 points, it should give you a chance to win."
Kamiakin held a 21-14 halftime lead, but all but cemented the win with a 14-0 run to begin the second half. Garrett Anderson got the Braves off on the right foot, hitting a jump hook at 7:32 and then taking a pass from Rojas for a bucket inside and drawing a foul on Kody Winsor to convert the and-1 at 7:04.
"Me and coach (Reid) Preppernau have been working out in practice," said Anderson, who scored 11 points to share high game with Rada. "He told me if I've got a guy my size guarding me to go to the hoop. Tonight, they didn't have a big guy on me."
Despite trailing 35-14 with 4:11 left in the third quarter, Hanford still hoped to spark a comeback after missing its first five shots of the quarter. But that spark never came, as the Falcons finished 0-for-14 from 3-point range and got just six points from leading scorer Pete Zachara.
"I attribute it to the lack of mental focus. If you miss shots early on it tends to snowball," Zachara said. "We knew there was a chance if we started making some shots. But it didn't happen."
Rojas gave the Braves their biggest lead at 46-22 with a 3-pointer from the right wing, capping a 9-2 fourth-quarter run with 2:46 left to put the icing on the win.
Kamiakin will now set its sights on No. 3 Eisenhower in Yakima tonight. The Braves fell 56-38 at home in mid-January, but that was a different Kamiakin team that had lost five of six games.
"We have to play fundamental basketball," Anderson said. "They're big and they're athletic, but we're pretty excited."
HANFORD (29)
Bland, Hodgson 3, Kyle Wagar 10, Zachara 6, Winsor 2, Matta, Manderbach 2, Friesz, Rueter 4, C.Wagar 2, Haynes. Totals 10-44 9-10 29.
KAMIAKIN (48)
Rojas 3, Case Rada 11, Fletcher 6, Holle 10, Garrett Anderson 11, Hayfield 3, Moore, Mehic 2, En'Wezoh 2. Totals 20-50 3-5 48.
Hanford 8 6 6 9 -- 29
Kamiakin 13 8 16 11 -- 48
Highlights -- Rebounds: H 18, K 31; Rojas 8 assists, 6 rebs; Anderson 7 rebs; Hodgson 4 rebs; Zachara 4 rebs.
