By Nathan Joyce
MaxPreps.com
Washington's final two state basketball tournaments tip off this week.
The state's basketball fans will have their attention on the Class 3A tournaments, which are at Key Arena and the Bank of America Arena. The girls tournament is at Key Arena with the semifinals and trophy games at the BOA, on the University of Washington campus. The entire boys tournament is at the UW.
The Washington Interscholastic Activities Association moved the tourney from the Tacoma Dome to the Seattle venues in hopes of boosting attendance. The majority of the Class 3A schools are in the Seattle area.
And for the boys tournament, to find the favorite you need look no further than the Metro League. Teams from the Metro have won the Class 3A title the last five years and eight of the last 10.
But a new Metro team might be the tourney favorite. The Bainbridge Spartans are making their first state appearance since 1998. Bainbridge (22-3) finished the season ranked No. 1 in the state and won the ultra-competitive SeaKing District title Saturday. Bainbridge is the lone Metro team on the bottom half of the bracket.
On the top half, three Metro heavyweights will battle it out: O'Dea (21-5), which has played for the last three state titles and won in 2004 and 2005, Rainier Beach (18-7), which has won a trophy every year since 1998, and defending champs Seattle Prep (17-9). O'Dea and Rainier Beach, who have combined to win four of the last five state titles, could meet in the quarterfinals.
The girls race is expected to be a three-team battle. Auburn-Riverside (23-2), Meadowdale (24-0) and Chief Sealth (22-3) are all expected to be the teams to beat.
Chief Sealth of Seattle, a team with three Pac-10 recruits, won the last two state titles, but were stripped because of recruiting violations and the coaching staff was fired. They're hoping to win a title they can keep this year.
"That is the goal, obviously, for a lot of reasons," Carmen Martinez, a former Sealth coach who returned to the helm this season, told the Seattle Times. "It's personal. We don't want another asterisk behind our name."
State Basketball: Lynden Tries to Pull a Florida
Lynden won the Class 2A state football title in the fall. Now, the Lions are trying to add a state basketball title to the trophy case.
The Class 2A tournament is at the Tacoma Dome, starting Wednesday. The last eight years, it was held in Yakima.
Lynden could face Mark Morris (23-0), which is making its eighth-straight trip, for the state title. Both teams have been Class 3A state powers that dropped down this year.
State Basketball: Ferris Finishes Perfect Season
The Ferris Saxons of Spokane capped a 29-0 season with a 68-61 double overtime win over the Kentridge Chargers in the Class 4A state boys basketball tournament in the Tacoma Dome.
Ferris was the first Eastern Washington school to win a big-school state title since Walla Walla in 1999 (which beat Ferris that year in the title game; Ferris was also second in 2001 and 2002). Only three teams from east of the Cascades have won that title in the last 25 years.
Ferris' Shawn Stockton, nephew of NBA legend and Spokane native John Stockton, was named tourney MVP.
Ferris beat top-ranked Franklin, the defending state champs, 100-79 in the semifinals.
In fact, it was a Spokane kind of day in the Tacoma Dome. The Lewis and Clark (26-3) girls, who like Ferris hail from Spokane's South Hill, won their second-straight title, beating University of the Spokane Valley, 39-34. University is led by Tennessee-bound Angie Bjorklund, the only player from the state named to the McDonald's All-American team.
State Basketball: Colfax's Dynasty Continues
The Colfax girls won the Class 1A state title at the Yakima SunDome with a 31-28 win over King's of Shoreline.
It was a record fourth-straight title for the Bulldogs (29-2). King's (25-4) was trying to extend its own streak; it had won the last two Class 2A state titles.
Colfax's winning score was the lowest in state tourney history. King's lead 10-0 after the first quarter.
"I think we were a little intimidated at first," Colfax's Lauren Mellor, who became the state's first player to go 16-0 in games at state in their career, told the Yakima Herald-Republic. "It was King's, they were 2A champs. It took us awhile to match their speed and intensity."
In the boys title game, Brewster (29-0) beat Toledo, 56-47. Brewster won the state title three years ago, then lost to Bellevue Christian the last two years in the state title game. It was the Bears' eighth state boys title.
In the Class 2B state tournament at the Spokane Arena, Northwest Christian (29-1) of Colbert (north of Spokane) knocked off Wahkiakum of Cathlamet, 46-38, in the title game. It was NWC's second-straight title.
Mossyrock (24-2) beat LaSalle, 47-46, for the Class 2B girls title. Lexi Belcher clinched the win by hitting a pair of free throws with 1.9 seconds left. LaSalle was the defending state champs.