Prep Basketball / Class B -- Chief Leschi Wins First State Title
SPOKANE - Brandon Brown scored 18 points and Lamont Trent had 17 as Chief Leschi jumped to an early lead en route to a 70-51 victory over Valley Christian to win the Class B boys state basketball championship last night.
The Warriors, of Puyallup, finished the season 26-3 and extended their winning streak to 14. The Panthers, from the Spokane Valley, dropped to 25-3 and lost for the first time in 14 games.
It was the first tournament appearance for both teams and the only time since 1960 that a school won the title in its first trip to the tourney.
The Warriors, with five players standing at least 6-foot-2, dominated below the basket, outrebounding the Panthers 44-31. Chief Leschi's bench also came up big, outscoring Valley Christian's reserves 25-9.
St. John-Endicott 63, Curlew 60 (2 OT) - Karl Scheuerman scored a game-high 24 points and hit two key free throws in the second overtime as St. John-Endicott (23-6) edged Curlew (23-8) for third place. Curlew took sixth.
St. John-Endicott got 20 points and seven rebounds from Grant Bafus. Gunner Olsen led Curlew with 19 points.
La Conner 44, St. George's 29 - Dane Lundberg led all scorers with 14 points as La Conner (24-4) shut down St. George's offense en route to a victory in a fourth-place game. St. George's (22-9) finished seventh.
Odessa 50, Darrington 45 - Ryan Floch scored a game-high 19 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as Odessa (21-10) beat Darrington (17-11) for fifth place. Darrington got 14 points apiece from Ned Miller and Dennis Sherrill.
Girls games
Ritzville 50, Wilbur-Creston 37 - Shannon Russel scored all of her 18 points from three-point range as Ritzville repeated as Class B girls state basketball champion. The Broncos, the second team in tournament history to win two straight titles, finished the season 29-0 and have a 39-game winning streak dating to last season.
"Whoever would have thought that we could ever do this?" Ritzville Coach Howard Manke said. "It's just unbelievable."
The game pitted the same two opponents as last year's title game, which Ritzville won 33-26.
The Wildcats finished the season 20-8, with five of their losses coming against Ritzville. The Eastern Washington teams are located about 50 miles apart.
Alyssa Erickson paced Wilbur-Creston with 16 points and seven rebounds.
St. George's 44, Sprague-Harrington 43 - Miranda Routh-Corker scored six of her game-high 19 points in the final three minutes as St. George's (24-6) took third place. The Falcons (19-12) placed sixth.
Manson 66, Sunnyside Christian 55 - Katie Davis scored 31 points and grabbed 18 rebounds as Manson (21-6) erased a seven-point deficit heading into the fourth quarter to defeat Sunnyside Christian (20-6) for fourth place. Davis broke a tournament record with 50 points against Wahkiakum on Friday.
Waitsburg 50, Tekoa-Oakesdale 33 - Anne Bickelhaupt scored a game-high 14 points as Waitsburg (21-7) surged in the third quarter to defeat Tekoa-Oakesdale (26-5) for fifth place.