Boys 1B: Pomeroy hits a dozen 3-pointers en route to quarterfinal win over Odessa

The Pomeroy Pirates are hardly a longshot for the state boys 1B title.

Not with shots like these.

The Pirates made some amazing ones Thursday at the Spokane Arena on the way to a 64-43 quarterfinal win over Odessa. They ranged from the sublime – a dozen made 3-pointers – to the ridiculous shot put up by Devon Caruso just before intermission.

In the final seconds of the first half, Caruso emerged from a scrum with the ball. Careening toward the sideline, Caruso managed to heave it side-armed from 50 feet.

It was good for three points and a 26-21 Pirates a halftime lead, but worth so much more.

Channeling that momentum, they outscored Odessa 22-9 in the third quarter to take control.

“That was a huge lift for us and probably a downer for them,” said forward Jacob Tewalt, who did much of the heavy lifting to help Pomeroy return to the semifinals for the second straight year.

Last year, the Pirates fell in the semis by five points to eventual champion Sunnyside Christian.

“We’re hoping to get a little farther this year,” Tewalt said.

The fifth-seeded Pirates (22-3) face Almira/Coulee-Hartline at 5:30 p.m. Top-seeded Sunnyside Christian and Yakama Tribal will meet in the first semifinal at 3:45 p.m.

Finding the range from all over the court, Tewalt was 11-for-15 from the floor, including a 5-for-7 effort from beyond the arc. He finished with a game-high 33 points and six rebounds.

Caruso and Ryan Wolf added 13 apiece. Each had a trio of 3-pointers.

While Odessa was seeded into the quarterfinals, the Pirates had to get there by beating Mt. Rainier Christian on Wednesday.

But if the Pirates looked fatigued, it didn’t show. They jumped out to an 11-4 lead after the first quarter before Odessa rallied in the second to take a brief lead.

“The kids played hard,” coach Brian Koller said. “I was surprised, but they had good legs.”

The big push came in the third quarter. Tewalt opened with a three. Two minutes later he hit a short jumper to give the Pirates their biggest lead to that point, 34-21.

Another Tewalt trey from the corner made it 48-30 going into the fourth quarter.

Odessa (23-4) scored seven quick points before Pomeroy put the game away at the foul line.

“We play really well together,” Tewalt said. “We just came out with the intensity and kept pushing.”

Odessa was coming off one of its biggest wins of the year, a 55-31 drubbing of No. 3 seed Cedar Park Christian last weekend.

However, the Tigers struggled on Thursday, shooting 33 percent from the field and 26 percent from long range.

Ryan Moffet had 20 points for Odessa, which will play Muckleshoot Tribal in a loser-out game Friday at 10:30 a.m.