Kamiakin boys dream of Tacoma Dome, Hardwood Classic

The Kamiakin Braves will have their “Run Kano” family in the stands at Richland High School on Saturday, when the boys and girls basketball teams try to play their way into the state’s final eight.

The Kamiakin boys (17-6), who will face Lincoln of Tacoma at 4 p.m., hope to give their rabid cheering section something to celebrate: a return to the Tacoma Dome after a three-year absence from the Hardwood Classic.

The Braves are coming off two big subregional wins after losing to Kennewick in the Mid-Columbia Conference district championship game. They knocked off Rogers of Spokane and then earned the No. 2 seed to the Class 3A state regionals with a 70-51 victory over Kennewick at the Lions Den.

“That was honestly the best game we had all year,” said Isaiah Brimmer, a junior shooting guard/small forward. “We don’t want to lose. Coach (Brian) Meneely’s always telling us: ‘Hangers, boys, hangers. We don’t want to hang up our jerseys.’ ”

The Braves will face a sixth-ranked Lincoln team that is keyed up to play in front of a home crowd next week. Some of coach Aubrey Shelton’s players have never been inside the Tacoma Dome.

“The last two years, we’ve lost in the round of 16,” said Shelton, who helped lead the Abes to a 4A state title as a player in 2001. “Only one of our players was there three years ago when we made the dome.”

After losing to fifth-ranked Peninsula of Gig Harbor in the quarterfinals of the West Central/Southwest bidistrict tournament, 3A Narrows League champion Lincoln (21-4) went on to take the No. 5 seed to state regionals.

“They’re quick and athletic, and they’re gonna put pressure on you all game,” Meneely said. “They don’t have the same amount of size we do, but they present problems with their athletic ability.”

Trevion Brown is averaging 13 points, four assists and two steals a game for the Abes, while Willie Thomas leads the team with six rebounds and two blocks per contest. Trevante Anderson (11 points per game) and Brandon Cotton (8 ppg) also have been key contributors for Lincoln.

The Braves, who finished third at state in 2011, haven’t been back to Tacoma since taking fifth in 2012.

Senior big man Hayden Nelson (15.6 ppg), Brimmer (14.2) and sophomore guard Garrett Paxton (13.2) have shouldered the offensive load for Kamiakin this season, and they’ve combined for more than half of the Braves’ rebounds. But in the district title game, they had all of Kamiakin’s points in a 55-52 loss to Kennewick.

Hangers, boys.

With that phrase bouncing around in their minds, six players scored for the Braves in their District 5/8 loser-out game against the Lions.

On a scale of 1 to 10, the intensity level “was like a 25 for me, honestly,” Paxton said.

“I’ve been dreaming of cutting down the nets since I was a little kid. I was really wanting to beat those guys and go on again. It was a really fun game to win and experience.”

When they take the court against Lincoln, the Braves are determined to not only show up well for their school, but for their conference. They’re the only MCC boys team still alive after Kennewick, Richland and Walla Walla were eliminated last week.

“Our kids are confident,” Meneely said. “They’re excited. They’re asking questions. They’re working hard. They want to take another step. Nowhere along the line was our goal to get to the round of 16. We want to get to Tacoma.

“We’re proud of what we’ve accomplished, but we’ve still got work to do.”

SMALL SCHOOLS: In the 1A state regionals, Connell (19-5) will face Cashmere (17-5) at 6 p.m. Saturday at Wenatchee High School. The Eagles last went to state in 2008, placing fourth in 1A.

Gabe Tolrud (14.7 points, 9.1 rebounds per game) and Brian Hawkins (10.1 points, 5.5 assists) were all-SCAC East first-team selections for Connell. Second-team pick Brenden Turner (11.6 points) and Silas Chase (10.8) also are capable of putting up points.

“We are fairly balanced scoring-wise,” said Devin O’Brien, who was named the SCAC East coach of the year.

Nick Hopkins, who made the SCAC East second team last year as a freshman, has returned after missing 21 games this season because of a stress fracture in his back.

The top eight 1A and 2A teams will play next week at the Yakima Valley SunDome.

▪ Sunnyside Christian (20-5) will face defending 1B champion Lummi Nation (17-8) at 2 p.m. Saturday at Richland High.

Sunnyside Christian, which is making its 18th consecutive state tournament appearance, won titles along the way in 2002, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011 and 2013. But the team lost in the round of 16 the past two seasons.

The Knights are led by sophomores Luke Wagenaar (14.6 ppg), Chance Marsh (14.0), Cade Bosma (9.9) and Lane Marsh (9.1). Coach Dean Wagenaar, Luke’s father, recorded his 400th career victory last month.

In the 2B state regionals, DeSales (16-9) will play against Mossyrock (17-7) at noon Saturday at W.F. West High School in Chehalis.

Cole Miedema (15 ppg, 8 rpg) and Zach Leahy (11 ppg, 10 rpg) lead the Irish, whose last state tournament appearance came in 2007. Isaiah Standard and John Crowley each average eight points per game.

Next week’s 1B and 2B state games will be held at the Spokane Arena.

This story was originally published February 26, 2016 at 6:05 PM with the headline "Kamiakin boys dream of Tacoma Dome, Hardwood Classic."