Men’s basketball

Ryan Rogers scored 14 of his 19 points in the second half including two three pointers and Matt Dodson’s three point play at the 4:05 mark led Saint Martin’s to an 82-73 non-conference win to NAIA Northwest Christian.

In a back-and-forth contest that featured 14 lead changes and 10 ties, the Saints pulled away late in the contest. Tied at 64, Rogers hit a three at the 6:01 mark to give the Saints the lead for good. Following an Austin Kuemper free throw, Dodson scored the next five points for the Saints including a strong take to the hoop on a fastbreak pass from Issacc Bianchini that fell and drew the foul. He would hit the and-one free throw to give the Saints a 72-66 lead.

After a Coleton Baker jumper that cut the Saint Martin’s lead to four points, Bianchini calmly buried a three pointer with 2:33 left and the Beacons would never threaten again.

Riley Carel scored 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting and pulled down six boards and Lucas Shannon was perfect from the field going 6-of-6 for 12 points. Evan Coulter chipped in 11 points with four assists. The Saints shot 54.4% from on the night including 43.5% from distance.

University of Oregon transfer Kuemper led Northwest Christian with 21 points and seven rebounds while Montana transfer Spencer Coleman, who scored five points in the NCAA Tournament against Syracuse last year and averages 21 points and 11 rebound per game, scored 19 quiet points and was kept off the glass with just three boards as the Saints outrebounded the Beacons 33-30.

Boys basketball

North Thurston trailed Foss by just four points until the fourth quarter when the Falcons finally pulled away from the Rams to take home a 70-58 3A Narrows League win. Chris Reynolds led the Rams with 17 points and Steven Stone and David Marrero each added 16. Armond Davis led all scorers with 22 for Foss.

Gig Harbor took a 10 point lead into the half and despite a 38 point second half, the Bears were unable to reel in the Tides and fell 65-59. Mitch Fettig led all scorers with 19 points and Ben Bishop and Max Fortier each finished in double digits with 11 and 10 points respectively. The Bears fell to 0-2 in the 4A Narrows.

Donaven Dorsey scored 14 of Timberline’s 17 first half points but was also saddled with foul trouble all game long and the Blazers fell to Wilson, 71-51. Timberline fell to 0-2 against the two 3A Narrows League favorites.

Girls basketball

North Thurston moved to 1-1 in the 3A Narrows League with their 41-20 win over Foss in Tacoma. Hayley Niles scored 16 points and Megan Kramer notched eight for the Rams.

After scoring just one point in the third quarter and falling behind 28-21, the Bears clamped down and outscored Gig Harbor 18-4 to take their second win of the 4A Narrows League season with a 39-32 road win. Mackenzie Cooper and Nicole Fesenbek each scored 10 points and Jenna Randich added seven.

Callan Russell scored 20 points and Linea Myhand chipped in 10 but the Blazers were unable to overcome Wilson’s 21-16 second quarter and fell 61-53 in Tacoma. Josie Matz led the Rams with 17 points.

Evan Coulter

Men’s basketball
Saint Martin’s vs. Northwest Christian – Marcus Pavilion – 7:00 PM

The Saint Martin’s men FINALLY play their first non-exhibition game of the season on their home court at Marcus Pavilion tonight when they face Northwest Christian at 7:00 PM.

The Saints went 2-6 in counting games while on the road including a split in GNAC play. They knocked off Simon Fraser 78-62 on December 5th and fell to Western Washington 87-75 on December 7th. They have played two exhibition games against Division I opponents and hung with Montana on Sunday night, trailing by just eight twice in the second half.

Northwest Christian is 7-3 in their first season under head coach Luke Jackson. Jackson was one of the best and most popular players to come out of the University of Oregon and was the tenth overall pick in the 2004 NBA Draft. Now he is the head coach of the NAIA school across the street from his alma mater. The Beacons are led by Spencer Coleman’s 20.7 points per game and 11.1 rebounds per game.

You can listen or watch the game with me, Brandon Sparks, on the call by clicking here.

Brandell Evans

Boys basketball
Timberline vs. Wilson – Timberline HS – 7:00 PM – Radio: Eli Sports
North Thurston vs. Foss – North Thurston HS – 7:00 PM
Olympia vs. Gig Harbor – Olympia HS – 7:00 PM

Narrows League play continues tonight with a big game at Timberline High School where Donaven Dorsey and the Blazers take on Alphonso Anderson and the odds on favorites in the 3A Narrows, the Wilson Rams.

Wilson is 1-0 in the 3A Narrows League coming off a 40 point win against Mount Tahoma on Friday night while Timberline sits at 0-1 in league after falling to Foss in overtime. The Blazers bounced back on Saturday with a double overtime win at Kentwood. Dorsey scored 44 of their 66 points in the game.