PORT ANGELES — Peninsula College dispatched Whatcom 97-60 with ease Wednesday night to clinch a share of the NWAC North Region men’s basketball title, then took in Everett’s last-second win over Edmonds, a victory which sealed the full North championship for the Pirates.
“We put the Everett game on the big screen after our game and Everett was up 10 with two minutes to play,” Peninsula coach Donald Rollman said. “Edmonds fights back and goes up two with 2.2 seconds. Everett throws the inbounds pass to halfcourt, he finds another guy who drains a 3 at the buzzer. So we felt all the emotions there, anxiousness, then it almost felt like we hit the shot. We went crazy.”
The Pirates previously took care of their end of the bargain, outperforming the last-place Orcas from the opening tip.
“We knew what was on the line,” Rollman said. “For the first time all year long, we started to talk last week about the opportunity we have to do something special. So we wanted to play with what we call our competitive arrogance — the ability to step on the floor regardless of opponent and bring the same passion, enthusiasm and intensity and play the same way game after game. It’s not an arrogance of, we can just step on the court and expect to win. It’s all about us and making sure we are full-throttle in everything we do.”
The Pirates shot nearly 60 percent in the first half (20 of 34, including 8 of 17 on 3-point shots) to take an insurmountable 56-29 halftime lead.
“We came out and punched them in the month,” Rollman said. “We started hot from 3, got a bunch of layins and a superb defensive performance. This was our third straight excellent defensive game. “Second half was fine, too, have to stay the course, defend and rebound. Offense can get a little tricky when you have such a big lead. But we shared the ball and were aggressive.”
Roosevelt Williams Jr. led Peninsula with 28 points on 14 of 18 shooting, picking up a double-double with 11 rebounds, four assists and a pair of steals.
“Ro had a great game. Teams have been doing everything they can to take him away, so it was good to see him step up,” Rollman said.
Malik Jackson also played well with 16 points, hitting 4 of 6 on 3-point tries and adding five assists and five rebounds.
“I was pleased with how we shared the ball and that we were aggressive with one or two passes and attacked right away, Rollman said.
Johnson puts up 12
Port Angeles product Gary Johnson came off the bench to hit four 3s and score 12 points with five assists and five rebounds.
Rollman said the team savored the win.
“I don’t let the foot off the gas too much, so I wanted to make sure the guys felt the importance of this,” Rollman said. “We’ve only had two days off since the season started, so I wanted us to recognized that we broke through, we got over the hump, and this is what the hard work has amounted to.”
Rollman said the Pirates won’t change their approach in their last two regular season games.
“We would have already practiced at 7:30 a.m. if the campus had been open [it was closed early Thursday],” Rollman said. “We will go tonight instead, and then we will go try and kick Edmonds’ butt on Saturday, and then we have Everett at home Wednesday for Sophomore Night,” Rollman said.
The Pirates will play the East Region No. 4 at the NWAC Tournament Sweet 16 round on March 8 in Pasco.
Peninsula 97, Whatcom 60
Whatcom 29 31 — 60
Peninsula 56 41 — 97
Peninsula (97) — Williams 28, Jackson 16, Medlock 12, Johnson 12, Onakpoma 11, Ervin 6, D’Amato 5, Dean 4, McCullough 2, Tinsley 1.
Whatcom (60) — Bell 19, White 13, Zamora 9, Salomon 6, Ballah 6, Humphrey 5, Russ 2.
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Sports reporter/columnist Michael Carman can be contacted at mcarman@ peninsuladailynews.com.
Peninsula’s Roosevelt Williams Jr., right, backs into Whatcom’s Kevin Salomon, sending him to the floor on Wednesday night in Port Angeles. (Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News)
