Richland wins revenge matchup. They head now to WA basketball semifinals
There are times when Landen Northrop is shooting so well that the basket is huge.
“Tonight, it was the size of the ocean,” said Northrop, after he scored a game-high 33 points to lead the No. 2-seeded Richland Bombers to a 76-62 victory over West Valley of Yakima in the Class 4A state basketball tournament in the Tacoma Dome on Thursday. “That’s what it looked like to me.”
The quarterfinal victory for Richland, now 26-0, moves the Bombers into Friday night’s semifinals, where they’ll play No. 3 Lake Washington, which held off No. 4 Glacier Peak 49-46 in an earlier quarterfinal.
Friday’s semifinal is set for 9 p.m.
Thursday’s win over West Valley provided the Bombers with a little revenge.
It was last year in the quarterfinals that the Rams had beaten the Bombers 73-70.
“It definitely was (some revenge),” said Northrop. “They knocked us out in the quarterfinals last year. I was mad the whole year about that.”
Maybe it was that game last year. But Bombers coach Earl Streufert said after the Thursday’s win that they changed their defensive scheme this time around.
“We stayed out on their shooters,” said Streufert. “And we went old school on Parker Mills. We played him over the top. Last year, we played behind him.”
Mills, a 6-foot-6 forward who is committed to WSU on a football scholarship as an offensive lineman, hampered Richland in 2025. He made successful moves to score points and snare rebounds.
On Thursday, Mills still earned a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds.
But the Bombers slapped the ball out of his hands a few times too, disrupting the Rams’ offensive flow.
Northrop said Mills was a force.
“I talked to him before the game and asked what his weight was up to,” said Northrop. “He said 285 pounds. He’s so strong. He’s got great footwork. He’s an amazing athlete.”
The other concern for Richland was getting its shooters adjusted to the depth perception in the cavernous Tacoma Dome.
Streufert said the Bombers didn’t even make the trip over the mountains until Thursday afternoon.
“It’s one more night where the guys can sleep in their beds,” he said. “You don’t get to shoot in the Tacoma Dome on Tuesday (before the tournament proper begins).”
Wednesday’s schedule was full, with loser-out games.
“We got into town about 4:30 p.m. and took care of the paperwork,” Streufert said.
That meant the first time anyone on the team could shoot at a basket was in warmups after 9 p.m. (the game started at 9:20 p.m.).
So again, Richland’s shooters started out slow, going 4 for 20 (20 percent) from the 3-point line in the first half.
It was time to move in, in the second half.
The Bombers only put up nine 3-point attempts in the second half. But they went 16 for 32 (50 percent) overall from the floor to take control.
That included Northrop, Lance Horntvedt (20 points) and Jackson Woodard (10).
The key stretch came from Northrop late in the third quarter.
The Rams trailed 50-40 when they went on a 9-0 run to cut Richland’s lead to 50-49.
But Northrop was fouled on a 3-point attempt and sank the ensuing three free throws. He then answered with another trey to complete his own 6-0 run to give the Bombers a bigger lead and eventually the win.
The senior says the team hasn’t hit its peak on offense yet.
“I think we were an 8, 8.5 maybe tonight (on a scale of 1-10, 10 being the best),” said Northrop. “Obviously we’ve got some work to do.”
NOTE: How do you feed a basketball team, and when do you do it, when it has a 9 p.m. game? Streufert says by taking the team to Chick-fil-A as soon as they get into town, feeding them around 6 p.m., and then have sandwiches and fruit waiting for them after the game at the hotel when they got back around 12:30 a.m. “Then we’ll let them sleep in (on Friday),” said Streufert. “We have a practice at 11 a.m.”
Streufert said the Bombers had late night games at the state tournament in both 2014 and 2022, so they have the routine down.
2A girls
(3) PROSSER 78, (5) ARCHBISHOP MURPHY 41: Jessica Huntington has been a part of the Prosser girls basketball program for a while now, the last three seasons as the Mustangs’ head coach. Before that, she was an assistant coach.
Now, for the fifth consecutive year, Prosser finds itself playing in the state semifinals in the Yakima Valley SunDome.
On Thursday, Prosser outscored ABM 24-8 in points off turnovers, and it easily had control of the game from the outset.
Junior Herbie Wright scored 23 points, grabbed 6 rebounds and had 3 steals.
Senior Deidra Phillips added 16 points and 7 rebounds.
But it was Lailah Carter who really shined for the Mustangs, now 23-3, by scoring 18 points, dishing off 9 assists and getting 5 steals.
Huntington says the players on this team are ready to get past the semifinal round.
“I think so,” she said. “They’re pretty hungry for it. Our four upperclassmen have been here before and they know what to do.”
And the Mustangs face a familiar foe in Central Washington Athletic Conference rival Ellensburg in the 5:30 p.m. semifinal.
Prosser has beaten Ellensburg all three times the two teams have played each other.
“We will stick to our style of play (on Friday),” said Huntington. “We talk about being 0-0 every time we take the floor.”
2A boys
(1) BREMERTON 65, (7) GRANDVIEW 47: Jalen Davis scored 29 points, and top-ranked Bremerton took control of the semifinal game against Grandview in the third quarter.
The Knights forced the Greyhounds into 17 turnovers, and they outscored Grandview 30-8 in points off of those turnovers.
Francisco Medina led Grandview with 25 points.
1A boys
(3) ROYAL 63, (5) ANNIE WRIGHT 37: The Knights advanced to the state semifinals, leading the entire game in Yakima.
Using a balanced scoring attack, Royal’s smothering defense also forced Annie Wright’s players into 22 turnovers, outscoring the Gators 26-7 in points off of turnovers.
Grant Wardenaar and Dax Jenks led the Knights with 14 points each, while Manny Ruvalcaba and Graham Palmer added 10 points each. Ruvalcaba also grabbed 10 rebounds.
Now the Knights meet No. 1 Zillah in the semifinals at 3:45 p.m. Friday.
Royal is 23-4, with three of its losses to league rival Zillah.
1A girls
(5) ROYAL 51, (6) BELLEVUE CHRISTIAN 42: The Knights outscored the Vikings 16-7 in the fourth quarter to pull away for the quarterfinal victory in Yakima.
Graycie Kast led the way for Royal with 21 points and 10 rebounds; while Lauren Wardenaar added 13 points, 5 rebounds and 5 steals.
The swarming Knights defense forced Bellevue Christian into 19 turnovers, which included 10 steals.
Now Royal advances to the semifinals, where the Knights will meet top-ranked King’s at 7:15 p.m. Friday.
Both teams have 22-4 records.
2B boys
(3) OKANOGAN 63, (5) TRI-CITIES PREP 54: Okanogan went on a 22-0 run over the second and third quarters to beat the Jaguars in the quarterfinals in Spokane.
Prep tried to rally in the fourth quarter, getting within 5 points. But it wasn’t enough, and the Jags’ bid for a state title ended.
However, Prep can still finish as high as fourth place over the next two days, beginning with No. 10 Freeman at 12:15 p.m. on Friday.
Layne McClure led the Jaguars with 25 points, 3 assists and 2 steals; while teammate Jameson Elliott had 16 points.
Hyrum Lyles had 18 points and 9 rebounds for Okanogan, which takes on No. 1 Colfax in a semifinal game at 7:15 p.m. on Friday night.
(6) REARDAN 55, (12) COLUMBIA-BURBANK 31: The Coyotes, the defending state champs, couldn’t get their outside shooting going as the Screaming Eagles won the quarterfinal game.
Justin Vaughn scored 22 points and Fred Frolov added 21 for Reardan. Teammate Maveric Sobotta had 18 rebounds and 8 assists.
Burbank was led by JJ McVicker’s 16 points. The Coyotes shot just 11 percent (3 for 26) from the 3-point line.
Burbank plays No. 2 Northwest Christian at 2 p.m. Friday in a consolation game.
1B boys
(4) DESALES 78, (6) LIBERTY CHRISTIAN 74 (OT): The Irish outscored the Patriots 16-12 in overtime to win their quarterfinal game in Spokane.
Spencer Green had a game-high 24 points and 4 assists to lead DeSales into the semifinals, where it’ll meet No. 1 Lummi Nation at 3:45 p.m.
Cohen Wood added 20 points.
The Irish outscored the Patriots 24-7 in points off of turnovers.
Ryker Wageman led LC with 21 points, and he had 4 assists and 3 steals. Teammate Harrison Cowan added 18 points on a perfect 6-for-6 shooting performance from the 3-point line.
LC forced the overtime by outscoring DeSales 15-5 in the fourth quarter.
The Patriots will play Neah Bay in a consolation game at 9 a.m. on Friday.
Tacoma Done
Class 4A boys
THURSDAY, MARCH 5
Quarterfinals
Game 16 — (2) Richland 76, (8) West Valley-Yakima 62
FRIDAY, MARCH 6
Semifinals
Game 20 — (3) Lake Washington vs. (2) Richland, 9 p.m.
Yakima Valley SunDome
Class 2A boys
THURSDAY, MARCH 5
Quarterfinals
Game 14 — (1) Bremerton 65, (7) Grandview 47
FRIDAY, MARCH 6
Consolation game
Game 17 — (7) Grandview vs. (4) Pullman (loser out), 12:15 p.m.
Class 2A girls
THURSDAY, MARCH 5
Quarterfinals
Game 15 — (3) Prosser 78, (5) Archbishop Murphy 41
FRIDAY, MARCH 6
Semifinals
Game 20 — (7) Ellensburg vs. (3) Prosser, 5:30 p.m.
Class 1A boys
THURSDAY, MARCH 5
Quarterfinals
Game 13 — (3) Royal 63, (5) Annie Wright 37
FRIDAY, MARCH 6
Semifinals
Game 19 — (3) Royal vs. (1) Zillah, 3:45 p.m.
Class 1A girls
THURSDAY, MARCH 5
Quarterfinals
Game 13 — (5) Royal 51, (6) Bellevue Christian 42
FRIDAY, MARCH 6
Semifinals
Game 19 — (5) Royal vs. (1) King’s, 7:15 p.m.
Numerica Veterans Arena, Spokane
Class 2B boys
THURSDAY, MARCH 5
Game 13 — (3) Okanogan 63, (5) Tri-Cities Prep 54
Game 15 — (6) Reardan 55, (12) Columbia-Burbank 31
FRIDAY, MARCH 6
Consolation games
Game 17 — (10) Freeman vs. (5) Tri-Cities Prep (loser out), 12:15 p.m.
Game 18 — (12) Columbia-Burbank vs. (2) Northwest Christian (loser out), 2 p.m.
Class 1B boys
THURSDAY, MARCH 5
Quarterfinals
Game 13 — (4) DeSales 78, (6) Liberty Christian 74 (OT)
FRIDAY, MARCH 6
Game 17 — (7) Neah Bay vs. (6) Liberty Christian (loser out), 9 a.m.
Semifinals
Game 19 — (4) DeSales vs. (1) Lummi Nation, 3:45 p.m.
-Jeff Morrow is former sports editor of the Tri-City Herald.