Riders cutting down the net, no word yet on tiebreakers for PA-NK boys and Sequim-PA girls. pic.twitter.com/ArhomJBoHE
— Michael Carman (@MikeCarmanPDN) February 11, 2022
PORT ANGELES — Port Angeles earned a share of the Olympic League boys basketball championship Thursday night with a resounding 80-63 win over North Kitsap, the No. 1 ranked team in the Associated Press media poll on Thursday night.
The No. 7 Roughriders rode a flurry of third-quarter 3-point baskets, three by senior Xander Maestas and another by leading scorer Wyatt Dunning, to break open a back-and-forth contest that was tied 36-all at halftime.
Port Angeles clamped down defensively and grew its lead to 68-52 with 4:04 to play but had to weather one final run from the defending state champions as a quick 8-0 Vikings run cut the Riders’ lead to 68-60 with 2:33 remaining.
But Port Angeles had the answers at the foul line in the fourth as five Riders sank free throws in the final quarter.
Dunning dropped in a game-high 27 points, including hitting 6 of 7 free throws to seal the game in the fourth quarter.
Vaara added 23 points, a monster swat on Vikings’ standout Jonas La Tour in the second half and drained three at the free-throw line late.
“We were able to get back to what was our original game plan of getting the ball inside to John,” Dunning said of the second-half surge. “He drew their attention down low and we made good passes and found our shooters.”
Port Angeles’ rebounding improved in the second half as the Riders cut out most second-chance opportunities for North Kitsap by keeping the shorter Vikings off the glass on both ends.
The Riders limited La Tour to 17 points. The Seattle Pacific-commit set a school record for points in a game earlier this season with 57, but was held to three second-half points as he dealt with a sore back.
La Tour’s not the only standout talent on the Vikings. Port Angeles also held University of Dallas signee Johny Olmstead, the school’s leading assist maker, to nine points.
“There’s a lot of respect between the two teams,” Dunning said. “I’ll reach out and text those guys when they do something big.”
Sophomores Harry Davies (17 points) and Cade Orness (13) were highlights for North Kitsap (13-1, 19-2).
The win also came on Port Angeles head coach Kasey Ulin’s 40th birthday.
“You could feel the energy in the gym,” Ulin said. “Sports are so powerful and can bring communities together unlike most things. Very thankful for that opportunity to compete against the best.”
North Kitsap won a coin toss held Friday morning to decide the Olympic League’s No. 1 seed to the district tournament.
The Riders (13-1, 16-4) will host a district playoff game against a to-be-determined opponent on Wednesday. The tournament brackets are expected to be set today.
Port Angeles 80, North Kitsap 63
NK 18 18 12 15 — 63
PA 15 21 21 23 — 80
North Kitsap (63) — Davies 17, La Tour 17, Orness 13, Olmsted 9, Olmstead 3, Bower.
Port Angeles (80) — Dunning 27, Vaara 23, Maestas 13, Nickerson 6, Wheeler 6, Soule 4.
Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News Port Angeles’ Xander Maestas, front, drives past North Kitsap’s Johny Olmsted on Thursday night in Port Angeles.
Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News Port Angeles’ John Vaara, left, looks for the hoop as North Kitsap’s Aiden Olmstead defends the lane on Thursday night in Port Angeles.
Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News Port Angeles Quanah Wheeler, front right, slips past North Kitsap’s Harry Davies, right, and Johny OIlmsted, left, as Wheeler’s teammate, John Vaara, looks on during Thursday’s match-up at Port Angeles High School.
Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News Port Angeles’ Michael Soule, left, slips past North Kitsap’s Johny Olmsted on Thursday in Port Angeles.
