NK boys, girls win league tournament first round games

The North Kitsap boys hoops team got a chance to avenge its opening night loss to Kingston in the first round of the Olympic League tournament, and they took full advantage.

Four Vikings scored 20 points or more as they knocked off their inter-district rival 91-47 Saturday in Poulsbo. North Kitsap will head back to Bainbridge for a semifinal game Monday.

It was the second Saturday in a row North Kitsap pulled off a major scoring feat — last weekend, two players, Jonas La Tour and Johny Olmsted, each scored 40 points in a victory over Bremerton.

Against Kingston, Olmsted and La Tour were joined by Cade Orness and Dalton Brockett in the 20-point club. La Tour led the way with 27, while Brockett and Olmsted had 21 each and Orness chipped in 20.

“It’s magic Saturdays,” North Kitsap coach Scott Orness said.

The Bucs looked like they were upset-minded once again in the early going as Dylan Baze hit the first two baskets of the game, and Kingston Trichler knocked down a jumper to give them an early 6-0 lead. Coach Orness quickly called a timeout to regroup his team, and North Kitsap went on an 18-5 run over the last six minutes of the first quarter. La Tour hit two 3-pointers to put his team ahead 15-11, and Cade hit a layup and the subsequent foul shot before the end of the quarter.

“The game plan was try to get them uncomfortable offensively,” Orness said. “We wanted to speed them up, even if we took some chances, and they got some easy buckets. We were able to convert a lot of those turnovers.”

Cade led the way in the second quarter, picking up 11 of his 20 points during that time. He opened with a couple of quick baskets, including one 3-pointer, and by the end of North Kitsap’s 27-point explosion, they led 45-24.

The gulf only widened in the third as it was Brockett’s turn to get hot. He drained all three of his 3-point attempts and hit a pair of free throws on the way to his 21-point night. Brockett is better known as North Kitsap’s top left-handed pitcher, but he’s now finding his groove on the basketball court as well.

“Over quarantine I played at Raab Park a little bit, but that was the extent of my basketball side,” Brockett said. “I’m definitely settling in now.”

Barring an upset, the win over Kingston will likely be the last home game for the boys this season. As the No. 3 seed, they will have to hit the road to play Bainbridge at Paski Gym. The two teams met there May 25, and North Kitsap won that game 62-54. A win there would likely set up a date with No. 1 seed Port Angeles.

“We know our identity on the court, who we are and what we represent,” La Tour said. “We’ll use that to propel us forward.”

North Kitsap 91, Kingston 47

KI 11 13 7 6 — 47

NK 18 27 30 16 — 91

Kingston (47) — Baze 14, Mead 12, Russell 8, Trichler 8, Chiquiti 3, Setterlund 2.

North Kitsap (91) — La Tour 27, Brockett 21, Olmsted 21, Orness 20, Hager 2.

NK girls knock off Olympic

The North Kitsap girls took the court at 11 a.m. Saturday, and both teams may have been a little sleepy as the game got off to a slow start. But by the second half, the Vikings were rolling, and they doubled-up the Trojans 52-25. They have won four of their past five games as they head on to a semifinal match at Port Angeles Monday.

Mia McNair led the Vikings with a game-high 17 points and was particularly strong down the stretch as she scored 10 of those points in the final frame.

“They picked it up in the second half, they put on the pressure, and they didn’t take it off,” North Kitsap coach Shawn Harris said.

North Kitsap received a strong performance from freshman Evelyn Beers, who added 14 points and also dominated the boards by grabbing 16 rebounds. “She’s a lot more aggressive,” Harris said. “She’s strong for a freshman.”

The Vikings led 17-16 at halftime, but were able to open up their lead in the third quarter. Anna Wetzsteon hit an early layup and later added a 3-pointer, and Beers and McNair each added baskets to give their team a more-comfortable cushion.

Meanwhile, the defense pressed hard all game long and caused a number of mid-court turnovers leading to fastbreak chances. The Vikings held Olympic to just one point in the third quarter.

In the fourth, North Kitsap went on an offensive tear, scoring 23 points to turn a close game into a blowout. In addition to McNair’s 10 points, Jade Sunnenberg hit a pair of field goals, and Beers made several strong moves to the hoop to pick up layups and foul shots, scoring eight of her 14 points. Ayanna Selembo and Stephanie Lara each chipped in a basket as well.

Next up is the top-seed in the girls tournament, Port Angeles, which has gone undefeated thus far this season.

“We’ve got our hands full,” Harris said. “We’ll go in, go watch film, do what we do, but we’re not going to change anything. We’re going to play how we play, fight and keep it close and go from there.”

North Kitsap 52, Olympic 25

Oly 8 8 1 8 — 25

NK 9 8 12 23 — 52

Olympic (25) — Bode 14, Willis 3, Godinez 2, Turnquist 2, Bubb 2, Hartford 1.

North Kitsap (52) — McNair 17, Beers 14, Wetzsteon 9, Sunnenberg 5, Lara 4, Selembo 3.