CMS 8th grader Davin Houston played strongly Monday against Sultan. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
Blood was shed and buckets were scored — though not always on the correct basket.
The next-to-last set of games for Coupeville Middle School boys’ basketball this season played out to their own funky rhythm Monday afternoon.
How things went down:
Level 1:
It was carnage on the hardwood.
Coupeville opened without leading scorer and rebounder Jayden McManus, who is battling illness.
Then, the Wolves took two more nasty hits, as inside enforcer Riley Lawless went down with a “severely sprained ankle” and point guard Chayse Van Velkinburgh got his lip split open by a wayward elbow.
While the remaining Wolves fought aggressively all game, they fell behind early to visiting Sultan and were never able to recover, losing 48-19.
The Turks set the tone of the game in the first quarter, sprinting out to a 21-5 lead while KO’ing Lawless and Van Velkinburgh.
From there Sultan pushed its advantage to 36-11 at the half, though Coupeville held up well during a low-scoring second half.
Wolf coach Jon Roberts praised the play of Davin Houston and Mahkai Myles, who carried the scoring load with eight and six points, respectively.
“Mahkai probably had his best game shooting,” Roberts said.
Lawless knocked down three points before he was knocked out, while Nic Laska banked in a bucket to round out Coupeville’s offensive attack.
Carson Grove, Sage Arends, and Joshua Stockdale also saw floor time for the Wolves.
Team 2:
The opening act in the Roger Merino-Martinez Experience, as the Wolf gunner rattled home all of Coupeville’s points in a 49-9 loss.
The speed demon scored every which way, rippling the net on a three-ball and also hitting both of his free throw attempts.
“Roger the Rocket scored on several steals or nice runners up the left side,” Roberts said.
“He surely missed enough buckets to have had another 12 points. We will work on those pesky layups tomorrow.”
Nathan Niewald, Cyrus Sparacio, Charles Hart, Dylan Robinett, Jacob Barajas, Brantley Campbell, and Kenneth Jacobsen rounded out a Wolf roster which is young and inexperienced, but feisty and hard-working.
Level 3:
Roger the Rocket kept the nets flipping, going off for another 15 points while coming off the bench in a 54-24 loss.
Coupeville rewarded a group of players who “have been giving max effort” with starts, sending Zach Blitch, Kenneth Jacobsen, Khanor Jump, Hunter Atteberry, and Johnathan Jacobsen out for the opening tip.
The Wolves continued to tinker with their lineup, mixing and matching and seeing what worked best.
“We messed with a tall lineup with a fast guard,” Roberts said. “We went with an all 4-foot-5 and under speed crew, and various other lineups to see if we could fluster Sultan.
“We had a good run in the third quarter,” he added. “All players saw the court and participated in one fashion or another.”
Trailing 36-13 at the half, the Wolves controlled the game in frame three, outscoring the Turks 11-8 with a little unexpected help.
Merino-Martinez tickled the twine for nine of his 15 points in the quarter, while Sultan’s #34 scored on the wrong basket, putting a rebound back up and in while probably wondering why none of the Wolves were trying to stop him.
Among guys actually wearing CMS uniforms, Sparacio rattled the rim for four points, while Campbell netted a three-ball.
One more rumble:
The Wolves close their season Wednesday with a rematch against South Whidbey, this time playing in Coupeville.
Tipoff is 3:15 PM.
After that, the CMS girls are next up, kicking off their season in January.
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