State B boys: Key defensive stop sends Northwest Christian past Chief Leschi and into 2B quarterfinals 56-55

Northwest Christian needed just one stop to keep its season alive.

With 8.8 seconds left , Chief Leschi’s Brenden Brown drove through a wide-open lane, with his team down one point, when NWC’s Titus Spuler quickly responded and blocked Brown’s shot.

The heroics sealed the Crusaders’ 56-55 win over the Warriors in a back-and-forth defensive State 2B boys round-of-12 game on Wednesday at the Spokane Arena.

Facing elimination for the second year in a row, the Crusaders (21-5) redeemed themselves from last year’s early exit after a first-round loss to Morton/White Pass.

“The guys have worked really hard on our defense, all year,” NWC head coach Aaron Spuler said. “It was 8 seconds left and we we’re up one and it was like, ‘We’ve worked all year for this. Rotate, call your stuff out, get your hands in their face and box out and get that rebound.’ ”

Down 6-0 early after a pair of 3-pointers by Brown, NWC called a timeout to settle down. NWC ended the quarter on a 16-11 run, thanks to nine-point spurt by Avi West, who finished with 21 points and 10 rebounds.

“First game in the Arena, we had to get the jiggles out,” West said. “I feel like next game we’re going to be a lot more sharp and play together.”

The Warriors (21-5) and Crusaders traded baskets in a fast-paced second quarter and the Warriors reached halftime up 33-30. Chief Leschi was 5 of 7 on 3-pointers in the half, with three coming from Brown, who had 13 points by halftime.

“They’re great shooters,” coach Spuler said. “They’re one of the best-overall shooting teams we’ve faced this season. We knew we had to get out there and close out on those shooters.”

NWC switched from zone to man-to-man in the second half and held the Warriors to five points in the third quarter. The Crusaders outscored the Warriors 10-5 in the quarter to go up 40-38 .

The offense picked back up 2 minutes into the fourth quarter, thanks to a four-point stretch from NWC’s Asher West, who scored seven of his 11 points in the final quarter. Avi West contributed five fourth-quarter points to keep the NWC offense rolling over the final minutes.

Titus Spuler’s game-sealing block wasn’t his only contribution. He finished with 10 points and nine rebounds while playing all 32 minutes.

“His focus was just to do his best to win the game,” coach Spuler said of his son . “I don’t think it was a moment for him. I think it was just, ‘What does the team need to do to win the game?’ and that really encapsulates a lot. Makes you proud.”

NWC advances to Thursday’s 10:30 a.m. quarterfinal to face a familiar conference opponent – No. 1 Davenport – for the third time this season.

“(Davenport’s) Tennessee (Rainwater) is the real deal,” coach Spuler said. “He can play outside. He can play inside. And then they got a good supporting cast around them. … They really are a juggernaut. They are tough and they are physical.”

2B

Lake Roosevelt 58, Wahkiakum 53: Chase Marchand scored 22 points, shooting 9 of 18 from the floor, and the third-seeded Raiders eliminated the 11th-seeded Mules.

Lake Roosevelt took advantage by scoring 17 points off Mules turnovers. The Raiders advance to play Northwest Christian on Thursday in a quarterfinal at 9 a.m. Zakk Carlson led Wahkiakum with 17 points.

Brewster 59, Tri-Cities Prep 49: Kelson Gebbers had 20 points and eight rebounds and the fifth-seeded Bears eliminated the 12th-seeded Jaguars.

Brewster advances to play sixth-seed Napavine on Thursday at 12:15 p.m. Blake McClure led Tri-Cities with 17 points, including 4 of 13 on 3-pointers. Cort Gebbers added 11 points for the Bears, who outscored the Jaguars 12-0 in bench points.

Lind-Ritzville/Sprague/Washtucna 61, Adna 46: Jayce Kelly scored 24 points and the ninth-seeded Broncos eliminated the eighth-seeded Pirates.

LRSW advances to play second-seeded Morton-White Pass in a quarterfinal on Thursday at 2 p.m. Braeden Salme led Adna with 23 points. Chase Galbreath added 14 points and a game-high seven rebounds.

1B

Mossyrock 67, Lummi Nation 64: Zackary Munoz scored 28 points and the No. 11 Vikings eliminated the sixth-seeded Blackhawks.

Mossyrock advances to play No. 4 Willapa Valley on Thursday at 3:45 p.m. Lummi Nation’s Jerome Toby led all scorers with 32 points, hitting seven 3s. Keegan Kolb added 25 points for Mossyrock, which went 15 of 29 from the free-throw line.

Cusick 56, Mount Vernon Christian 50: Bode Seymour scored 17 points and the seventh-seeded Panthers eliminated the 10th-seeded Hurricanes.

Cusick advances to play top-seeded Wellpinit in a quarterfinal matchup on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. Billy DeJong led Mount Vernon with 18 points. Chris Mackey added 14 points and seven rebounds for the Panthers. Cusick came out of halftime and went on a 9-0 run to take a lead it didn’t relinquish.

Justin Reed contributed to this report