Sorn and Paxton to go head-to-head in All-State game

Teammates this past weekend in the SWX All-Star Classic, Riley Sorn and Garrett Paxton will move back into familiar territory on Saturday when they square off in the Washington Interscholastic Basketball Coaches Association’s All-State Game.

The seniors-only All-Star showcase divides players up by their school’s classification. Sorn (Richland High School’s 7-foot-3 All-MCC and WIBCA 4A Player of the Year) will help lead the 4A squad against the 3A team featuring Paxton (Kamiakin’s all-time leading scorer) at 6 p.m. in the final game of the day at Curtis High School in University Place.

This past Saturday, Sorn and Paxton were part of the Tri-City team that fell to the Yakima All-Stars 131-106 in the SWX showcase at Kamiakin, scoring 14 and 10 points, respectively.

Paxton, who earlier this month committed to Whitworth University, joins a 3A squad that looks as fearsome as any all-star team in the country, let alone the state. Big-name talent on the team includes: WIBCA Mr. Basketball Kevin Porter Jr. (Rainier Beach, signed to play at USC next year); WIBCA 3A Player of the Year Emmitt Matthews Jr. (out of Wilson, signed at Connecticut); 3A All-State-Tournament MVP Erik Stevenson (Timberline, Wichita State signee); and Cleveland’s CJ Elleby (Washington State), just to name a few.

Sorn, who has yet to officially announce his college plans but is Division-I bound, pairs with a few familiar faces on the 4A team. His Richland Bombers downed Carson Tuttle’s Kamiak Knights in the state quarterfinals a couple weeks ago, and fell to Naje Smith’s Lewis and Clark Tigers in the third-/fifth-place game two days later. Also on the 4A squad are Sunnyside’s Trey Sanchez and Davis’ Collin Kelley, who played for Team Yakima in the All-Star Classic.

Also at the All-State games, Tri-Cities Prep’s Stefan Geist will play for the 2B team. Geist helped the 19-4 Jaguars to a state regional appearance this season — where they lost to White Swan 63-59 — and handed out three assists and pulled down a board for Team Tri-City at the All-Star Classic.

For those planning to make the trip over to see the games, tickets are $10 for adults and $8 for seniors, students and children under 12. Doors at Curtis open an hour before the 1B vs. 2B game, which tips off at 2 p.m. and will be followed by the 1A vs. 2A game at 4 p.m.

WHEELER NAMED TO WSGBCA ALL-STATE GAME

Also getting an All-State nod for the weekend was Prosser senior forward Brooke Wheeler, who will play for the 2A team in the Washington State Girls Basketball Coaches Association games Saturday at King’s High School in Seattle.

The 1A/2A game will tip off at 4 p.m. Adult tickets are also $10 for the girls games, but student/senior tickets are $6.

This story was originally published March 12, 2018 at 4:43 PM with the headline "Sorn and Paxton to go head-to-head in All-State game."