Union wins battle of state basketball champs in Washington

This week's stories from the Washington prep sports scene:

UNION WINS CHAMPIONS MATCHUP
While most basketball attention was focused on the University of Washington and the MLK Holiday Hoopfest, there was a big matchup in Kent. Kyle Holmes scored 12 points to lead a balanced scoring effort as the Union (Vancouver) Titans, the defending Class 3A state champs, beat the No. 6 Kentwood Conquerors, the Class 4A state champs, 50-44 at the Comcast Showcase.

NEW BASKETBALL BRACKET RELEASED
The upcoming state basketball tournaments are the first under the new format. The state tournament now has regional sites to pare things down from 16 teams to eight in each classification. The new bracket for that format has been released and can be found on WIAA.com.

ANRIO ADAMS IS HEADED FOR PREP SCHOOL
Anrio Adams is headed to South Kent School (Conn.), according to the Seattle Times. No reason has been given for the 6-foot-3 guard's transfer from Franklin (Seattle). He hasn't played since Dec. 29.

BRETT KINGMA HITS 30
Jackson of Mill Creek star Brett Kingma raised his season average to 30 points per game after scoring 35 to lead Jackson past Marysville-Pilchuck 77-62. It was Jackson's ninth straight win. Kingma, an Oregon signee, hit 14 of 18 from the free throw line.

LAKE STEVENS WINS WRESTLING SHOWDOWN
With the wrestling postseason coming up in just a few weeks, top-ranked Lake Stevens hosted No. 3 Moses Lake in a matchup of traditional Class 4A powers. Lake Stevens built a 36-18 lead in the match and held off a Moses Lake comeback — they had two pins and a major decision in the final three matches — to win 36-34.

TOP 5 PERFORMERS
* Sahara Hill, Foster girls basketball: Hill had 32 points and 16 rebounds in a 60-55 loss to Franklin.

* Kari Luttinen, Seattle Prep girls basketball: The senior guard scored 40 points as the Panthers beat Chief Sealth 78-43. She was 14 of 25 from the field and hit five 3-pointers.

* Cody Shackett, Cascade Christian boys basketball: The senior scored 21 points as the Class 1A state champs beat Seattle Christian 82-48. That gave Shackett 1,183 career points, the most in school history.

* Brandt Graybeal, Hazen boys basketball: The senior forward had 19 points and 17 rebounds as the Highlanders took over first place in the Seamount League with a 70-66 win over Kennedy Catholic.

* Justin Smith, Chiawana boys basketball: The senior scored 44 points in a 91-87 double overtime win against Richland.

FOOTBALL RECRUITING NEWS
Bellevue safety Kendrick Van Ackeren has an offer from Hawaii, the Seattle Times reports. He reportedly also has an offer from Idaho. ... Curtis wide receiver Mel Dochery took a visit to Oregon State.

UPCOMING EVENTS
The season is winding down quickly for wrestling, swimming and gymnastics. League or sub-regional meets for those sports are just a few weeks away. There's plenty of time to see your favorite basketball team play as the regular season lasts another month.

NATE'S NOTES
I'm a big fan of the high school basketball tournaments during the Martin Luther King holiday. The Seattle area especially does a nice job, getting big games and big names to draw crowds.

The Holiday Hoopfest held at the University of Washington every year has to rank with the nation's best. With the Metro League, the top basketball league in one of the nation's top basketball producing states, playing in its backyard, many of those teams are at the UW year after year. This year was no different.

Nathan Joyce has covered high school sports in Washington for 13 years. He works at the Kitsap Sun in Bremerton.