PORT ANGELES — Port Angeles ran into a buzzsaw from Kingston, falling 68-46 at home to a tall, good-shooting boys basketball team sporting a 10-3 record.
The Buccaneers opened up a lead of 43-17 in the second half Tuesday and cruised to the end. Kingston got 28 points from Gabe Gregory and 16 from Andrew Shaw, a 6-foot-6 3-point shooting forward.
Grayson Peet scored 11 for the Riders, including a couple of 3-pointers, while Anton Kathol came off the bench to score 10 points. Garrett Edwards added seven points, all in the first half, as he almost single-handedly kept the Riders in the game early.
Port Angeles rallied twice on Kingston, but each time the Riders threatened, Kingston answered with a run of its own. Gregory and Shaw scored the first 15 points for Kingston and at one point, the Buccaneers opened up a 25-9 lead. Port Angeles cut that lead down to 29-17 near the end of the first half, but then Kingston answered with a 3-pointer by Shaw at the halftime buzzer, then went on an 11-0 run midway through the third quarter to blow the game open.
The Riders rallied again, scoring 20 points in the fourth quarter and going on a 20-8 run to cut the lead to 63-46 with about three minutes left, but the Buccaneers responded by scoring the final five points of the game to snuff out any threat.
Coach Kasey Ulin said Kingston is 5-1 in the Olympic League 2A Division for a reason and that the Riders are going to be OK despite the second straight home league loss. The Riders will have a lot of road games in the second half of league play, and Ulin said Port Angeles tends to play better on the road.
“We’re going to be just fine. I’m 100 percent confident in where we’re going,” Ulin said.
Ulin said the Riders settled for too many outside shots against the Buccaneers and that Kingston dominated the glass too much at times. The Buccaneers have six players between 6-2 and 6-6.
Ulin said Kathol was “phenonemal” off the bench and could start seeing more playing time.
Halfway through league play, Port Angeles (7-6 3-3) sits in fourth place in the Olympic League 2A Division standings. The top four teams advance to postseason play.
The Riders host North Mason (1-5, 5-7) at home at 7 p.m. Friday.
Kingston 68, Port Angeles 46
Kingston 17 15 21 15— 68
Port Angeles 6 11 9 20— 46
Kingston (68) — Gregory 28, Shaw 16, Young 12, Spencer 6, Freidel 4, Saffery 2.
Port Angeles (46) — Peet 11, Kathol 10, Edwards 7, Clark 6, Benedict 4, Angevine 3, McGoff 3, Joslin 2.
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Sports Editor Pierre LaBossiere can be contacted at 360-417-3525 or plabossiere@peninsuladailynews.com.
