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RICHLAND -- You couldn't exactly say that Mark Wilson was a one-man show during Liberty Christian's 81-23 shellacking of Pomeroy on Friday night in Richland.
That wouldn't be entirely accurate, considering that he played just a little over one half of the lopsided contest and was matched by Patriots teammate Derek Stratton with 17 points.
But it has to say something that by 1:32 of the second quarter, Wilson had already reached a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds to go with three steals and three assists -- more than the Pirates' totals in each category.
The 6-foot-2 senior guard was such a major factor that for roughly seven minutes between the first and second quarter, he literally owned the paint.
While Liberty Christian built a 34-8 lead, Wilson recorded 11 straight rebounds without a single board by Pomeroy.
"He's all over the place," said Patriots coach Terry Watson. "He gets everybody involved and makes us go."
After a 20-8 first quarter outburst, Liberty Christian held Pomeroy scoreless in the second quarter while outrebounding the Pirates 18-3 as a team in the first half.
"They dominated us on the boards," said Pirates coach Loren Beale. "The game was out of hand by the time we decided we wanted to start rebounding."
The Patriots (18-3) earned a berth in the district semis against Tekoa-Oakesdale (16-4) at 8:30 p.m. Monday at Walla Walla Community College, while Pomeroy (3-19) will face Dayton (9-11) at 3 p.m. Saturday in Colfax.
The Pirates managed a brief spark to begin the second half, getting a pair of buckets from post Justin Ruark to finally break double digits at 48-12. But the Patriots later squashed the minor uprising with a 9-0 run, ending the third quarter with a 61-17 lead.
"We worked hard, and I thought we played excellent help-side defense," Wilson said. "It's important when you get teams with multiple players who are really good."
Stratton and Joey Lane combined to give Liberty Christian a strong presence inside, combining for 31 points and a pair of blocked shots.
All in all, Liberty Christian's starting five put in a good day's work, leaving plenty of time for the bench to get some valuable playoff experience.
Freshman Jake Siefken, whose brother Jeremy helped the Patriots earn a third-place finish at the 2007 1B state tournament, came off the bench to hit a pair of 3-pointers and finished with nine points -- all in the fourth quarter.
"Siefken's a good little baller," Wilson said. "We work hard so we can get (the subs) some playing time."
POMEROY (23)
Koberstein 1, Curnutt, G.Beale 5, Justin Ruark 8, Morgan 2, Ren 2, S.Beale, Lueck 2, J.Bingman 3, C.Bingman, J.Koller, W.Koller. Totals 10-43 2-7 23.
LIBERTY CHRISTIAN (81)
Nash 7, Mark Wilson 17, Davis 2, Derek Stratton 17, Lane 14, Harrer 2, Siefken 9, Groth 1, Dustin 1, Brockman, Corrigan 8, Salzano 3. Totals 30-56 16-24 81.
Pomeroy 8 0 9 6 -- 23
Liberty Christian 20 23 18 20 -- 81
Highlights -- Rebounds: P 22, LC 33; Wilson 13 rebs, 7 assists, 5 steals; Brockman 4 assists; Siefken 3 steals 2x3 3 ptrs; Koberstein 2 steals.
