The Yakima SunDome will be home for 32 teams beginning Wednesday, each with the hope of a 1B state basketball championship.
Dean Wagenaar, coach of the two-time defending 1B champion Sunnyside Christian boys, is familiar with the challenges that loom in front of the Knights in their 11th straight trip to state.
"The postseason is about the moment. You have to be prepared," said Wagenaar, who has guided Sunnyside Christian to three state titles in the last four seasons.
But the veteran coach, now in his 14th year with the Knights, has a young team without a great deal of state experience.
"Some people complain about the setting of the SunDome, about the reflections and the size of the court. I'll diffuse that as much as possible," he said. "You've still got to play basketball."
The Knights (11-11) will play Lummi in the first round at 7:30 p.m.
Meanwhile, the Tri-Cities Prep boys are gearing up for their second trip to state in three years. With five players hovering around double figures, Jaguars coach Joe Perez is eager to find out just what his team is capable of.
"Everybody's healthy, everybody's excited. We've just got to make sure we stay focused and loose," Perez said. "After our last game, I told them let's not be a team that goes to state to just show up. Let's bring home some hardware."
Tri-Cities Prep (17-6) will play Clallam Bay in the first round at 10:30 a.m.
The Sunnyside Christian girls (17-5), who earned their fifth consecutive trip to state, will play Mary M. Knight at 12:30 p.m.
Moses Lake Christian was the second Mid-Columbia team to qualify both its boys and girls' squads to state.
The MLC boys (20-2) drew a first-round matchup against Oakville at 5:30 p.m., while the girls (11-8) will open against Sprague-Harrington.
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