NEAH BAY — The Neah Bay boys basketball team used a huge second half to storm back against Orcas Island, winning their Tri-District tournament opener 81-67.
The win automatically qualifies the Red Devils for the 1B regionals.
It was the seventh straight win for the Red Devils, who have clawed their way up to No. 8 in the Ratings Percentage Index rankings after a slow start to the season. Orcas Island beat Neah Bay 72-64 in late December.
After Orcas took a 22-14 lead following the first quarter, the Red Devils scored 67 points in the final three quarters, including 47 in the second half, to pull away. They outscored the Vikings 47-33 in that second half.
Despite scoring 81 points, Neah Bay didn’t shoot well from outside or from the free-throw line, going 2-for-19 from beyond the arc and 15-for-29 from the charity stripe. The Red Devils did shoot 30-for-54 (55.6 percent) from 2-point range to get the bulk of their points.
Neah Bay also crashed the boards with 40 rebounds. The Red Devils got off 73 shots from the field compared to 59 for Orcas.
Julian Carrick led the Red Devils with 24 points, shooting 11-for-18 from 2-point range and pulling down six rebounds. Tyler Swan had a big game with 19 points and 14 rebounds.
Jaden Halttunen added 14 points and seven rebounds, while Jodell Wimberley scored nine points. Buddy Aguirre had seven points and eight rebounds.
Neah Bay (14-5) next plays in the Tri-District semifinals against Mount Vernon Christian (19-5, No. 9 RPI). If the Red Devils win, they move on to the Tri-District championship. Lose and they move on to a third-place game and still qualify for regionals. That game is scheduled to be played in Mount Vernon at 7:30 p.m. Friday. Mount Vernon Christian beat Neah Bay 53-49 earlier this season.
Neah Bay 81, Orcas 67
Orcas 22 12 14 19 — 67
NB 14 20 23 24 — 81
Orcas (67) — Lago 24, Murray 19, Eggenberg 10, Cleveland 5, White 5, Garcia 3, Stephens 1.
Neah Bay (81) — Carrick 24, Swan 19, Halttunen 14, Wimberley 9, Chambers 7, Aguirre 7, Woodruff 1.
Lummi 81, Crescent 26
LUMMI — The Crescent boys basketball team was down seven players due to the flu and wasn’t able to keep up with Lummi in an 81-26 Tri-District tournament loss.
Despite the loss, the Loggers are still alive in the tournament, moving into the consolation bracket.
“We went up against a very refined and well-coached Lummi team,” said coach Chris Ferrier. “I am pleased with the effort that the guys that we had showed. They played with a lot of heart.”
Titus White led the Loggers with 14 points. Crescent was forced to play without their leading scorer Conner Ferro-May and several other starters.
The Loggers’ next game won’t be easy, going up against No. 1 seed Sound Christian (19-4), which was upset by Summit Classical to move into the consolation bracket. The 12-seed Loggers (14-7) have already pulled off one big upset in the tournament, beating No. 5 Evergreen Lutheran in the opening round.
That game is scheduled to be played at Sound Christian in Tacoma at 5 p.m. Friday.
Lummi 81, Crescent 26
Cres. 4 11 6 5 — 26
Lummi 30 21 13 17 — 81
Crescent (26) — White 14, Sprague 4, L. Bourm 4, Emery 2, H. Bourm 2, Watson, Owens, Chartier, Willard.
