Columbia Basin College hosts 32 teams in NWAC men’s and women’s basketball championships

The Northwest Athletic Conference men’s and women’s basketball championships began Wednesday on the Pasco campus of Columbia Basin College.

Thirty-two teams — 16 men’s squads and 16 women’s teams — come to Pasco over the course of the next two weeks to determine champions.

This week entails the Sweet 16 and Elite 8 rounds, and by Sunday the Final Four for both tourneys will determined.

The semifinals for both men and women will be held on Saturday, March 15, with the finals set for Sunday, March 16.

This is the third consecutive year that the basketball championships have been held at CBC (last fall the NWAC awarded CBC an additional three years to host the tournaments), and those Hawks men’s and women’s teams have qualified each year.

Neither CBC women’s coach Amy Sokaitis nor Hawks men’s coach Anthony Owens would ever admit there is pressure to make sure their teams are in the tournament — the top four teams in each region qualify — but somehow their teams get it done.

Sokaitis’ women’s team opens tournament play at 12 p.m. Thursday, when it plays Lower Columbia.

Owens’ Hawks men will open tourney play at 12 p.m. Saturday against Portland.

CBC highlights

The Hawks women came out of the East Region battles as the No. 4 seed, finishing overall with a 14-11 record.

Amber Swan (Neah Bay) led the team with 15.3 points, 8.6 rebounds and 2.9 assists.

Ezrah Ray (Neah Bay) added 13.0 points and 7.0 rebounds; while Analyssa Maldonado (Sunnyside) averages 11.2 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.7 assists.

Swan was named to the NWAC East Region first-team all-star squad, and Sadie Turner (North Thurston) was named to the All-Defensive team.

The CBC men placed fourth in their region to qualify.

Coleton Hansen is the leader statistically, averaging 15.6 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists.

Teammate Bobby Siebers averages 14.1 points and 5.3 rebounds; while Keiren Brown scores 12.4 points per game and averages 3.3 assists.

Hansen was named to the second unit of the East Region all-star team.

Local connections

CBC’s women roster includes Prosser’s Amia Ibarra and Hanford grad Olivia Davis. … Grandview grad Maddy Butler plays for Centralia, while Walla Walla boasts Richland’s Macie Milum and Sunnyside Christian grad Taylor Andringa. … Stanfield shooter Maggie Sharp plays for Treasure Valley; Echo grad Nevaeh Thew is on the Olympic roster; and Chiawana graduate Matty Woolf is a member of Big Bend’s squad.

On the men’s side, CBC has five Mid-Columbia connections: redshirt Dacio Barbosa (Chiawana), Sammy Garcia (Hanford), Kory McClure (Prosser), Mahad Muse (Kennewick), and Brock Streufert (Richland). … Walla Walla’s Trey Arland (Kamiakin) was named first-team All-East Region for the Warriors. Charlie Tipke-Henry (Kennewick) and Will Sullivan (Walla Walla High) are also on the WWCC roster. … Grant Olsen (Hermiston) was named second-team All-East Region for Spokane. Kennewick grad Jonah Gebers is a Spokane teammate. … Lane’s Lawson Vella was formerly a member of CBC’s team.

MVPs, coaches

All eight Region MVPs are involved in the tournaments. On the women’s side, Umpqua’s Brooklyn Fely (South), Walla Walla’s Brielle Magnuson (East), Lower Columbia’s Karlee VonMoos (West) and Bellevue’s Devynn Warns (North) all lead their teams into the tourney. … Walla Walla’s Luke Holecek (East), Lower Columbia’s Kap Laila (West), Lane’s Ben Thornbrue (South), and Skagit Valley’s Silas Williams (North) were all named men’s region MVPs. … Both of Walla Walla’s coaches, Bobbi Hazeltine (women) and Jeff Reinland (men), were named East Region Coaches of the Year.

NWAC men’s tournament

Friday, March 7

Game 1, Lane (20-7) vs. Spokane (23-6), 10 a.m.

Game 2, Highline (19-10) vs. Skagit Valley (28-1), 12 p.m.

Game 3, Shoreline (11-14) vs. Lower Columbia (25-4), 6 p.m.

Game 4, Treasure Valley (12-14) vs. Clark (20-8), 8 p.m.

Saturday, March 8

Game 5, Edmonds (19-10) vs. South Puget Sound (23-6), 10 a.m.

Game 6, Columbia Basin (15-11) vs. Portland (19-9), 12 p.m.

Game 9, Winner 1 vs. winner 2, 2 p.m.

Game 10, Winner 3 vs. winner 4, 4 p.m.

Game 7, Southwestern Oregon (21-8) vs. Walla Walla (23-5), 6 p.m.

Game 8, Green River (24-5) vs. Bellevue (15-14), 8 p.m.

Sunday, March 9

Game 11 — Winner 5 vs. winner 6, 2 p.m.

Game 12 — Winner 7 vs. winner 8, 4 p.m.

NWAC women’s tournament

Wednesday, March 5

Game 1, Peninsula 66, Chemeketa 44

Game 2, South Puget Sound 57, Big Bend 45

Game 3, Lane 79, Bellevue 58

Game 4, Green River 81, Treasure Valley 63

Thursday, March 6

Game 5, Olympic (20-8) vs. Umpqua (26-2), 10 a.m.

Game 6, Columbia Basin (14-11) vs. Lower Columbia (17-9), 12 p.m.

Game 9, Peninsula (23-2) vs. South Puget Sound (21-8), 2 p.m.

Game 10, Lane (30-0) vs. Green River (17-10), 4 p.m.

Game 7, Centralia (8-17) vs. Walla Walla (23-5), 6 p.m.

Game 8, Clackamas (20-8) vs. Skagit Valley (18-9), 8 p.m.

Friday, March 7

Game 11, Winner 5 vs. winner 6, 2 p.m.

Game 12, Winner 7 vs. winner 8, 4 p.m.