Aiden O’Neill came up huge in the final moments Wednesday in a summer ball win. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
God’s chosen sport was in full bloom Wednesday night.
Basketball, of the early summer variety, was on the schedule, and Coupeville High School’s boys’ hoops squads were in action on their home hardwood.
Hosting Island rivals Oak Harbor and South Whidbey, the Wolves won two of three, pulling out a thriller in the JV game and splitting a pair of varsity tilts.
Ultimately, summer ball, with each game boasting two 20-minute halves with a running clock until the final 120 seconds, is more about improvement and growth than wins and losses.
“The boys are playing well together,” said CHS varsity coach Brad Sherman.
“And it’s summer, so we’re getting to see new groups play together and try some new stuff. It’s fun!”
The Wolves, who return most of their roster from this past winter, are scheduled to play in a variety of scrimmages and tourneys this summer, as well as attend a team camp at Gonzaga University.
How Wednesday’s games played out:
JV:
Coupeville scored the final six points to pull out a 37-36 win in a game with Oak Harbor where it led by eight early, then trailed by five late.
Down 36-31 with the clock running out, the Wolves had no room for error.
So, they played to perfection.
Jack Porter rolled down the baseline to knock down a bucket, before CHS clamped down on defense.
Oak Harbor was called for a crucial offensive foul with 36 ticks remaining — a Wildcat bowling over a Wolf defender with a resounding crunch — and Coupeville responded.
Aiden O’Neill buried a three-ball to knot the game at 36-36, his second trey in the game’s final moments, then came back around to knife the Wildcats with a game-icing free throw with six seconds on the clock.
The furious finale capped a game of extremes, as Coupeville rolled early, only to see Oak Harbor crawl back into the game behind a hail of three-balls.
Hunter and Hurlee Bronec had the hot touch early, combining for seven points as the Wolves built a 9-1 lead.
The Wildcats didn’t break however, closing the half on a 13-4 run, with a pullup jumper right before halftime pushing them out in front 16-15.
Coupeville trailed for much of the second half, briefly knotting things at 26-26 before Oak Harbor once again threatened to pull away for good.
O’Neill’s late heroics, which also included a note-perfect pass to set up Hunter Bronec for a key layup, kept the Wolves alive, with everything going exactly to script in the waning moments.
Jack Porter paced CHS with a game-high 14 points, with Hunter Bronec (8), O’Neill (7), Hurlee Bronec (4), Landon Roberts (2), and Mikey Robinett (2) also scoring.
Yohannon Sandles, Johnny Porter, and Timothy Nitta also saw floor time for the Wolves.
Varsity Game #1:
Blowout city, as Coupeville came out hot and never cooled off, thumping South Whidbey 47-23.
The Falcons actually scored the first bucket of the game, before the Wolves unleashed hardwood hell on their neighbors.
Logan Downes poured in 13 of his game-high 18 points during a game-busting 26-7 run, which also featured a couple of sweet buckets off the fingertips of Cole White and a beautiful hustle play by William Davidson.
The cerebral big man slid between a pair of Falcons to snatch away a rebound, before pivoting and firing a gorgeous outlet pass to Chase Anderson, who was so far ahead of the defense South Whidbey needed binoculars to watch the ensuing layup.
William Davidson, eyeballing the cameraman, is an invaluable role player. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
Up 26-13 at the half, the Wolves went deep into their bench, while continuing to push their advantage.
Downes singed the nets on a corner three-ball, after pulling off a shimmy-and-go move which left his defender parked six rows up into the bleachers.
After that, he left the scoring up to the young guns fighting for roster spots, with Jack Porter and Hunter Bronec spilling sweat while dominating in the paint.
White finished with eight to back up Downes and his 18, while Anderson dropped in six points.
Nick Guay (4), Porter (4), Bronec (4), Quinten Simpson-Pilgrim (2), and Davidson (1) rounded out the scoring, while Zane Oldenstadt and Ryan Blouin were aggressive on defense.
Varsity Game #2:
Coupeville’s top squad returned to the floor mere moments after wiping out South Whidbey, while Oak Harbor’s main crew was fresh and playing for the first time.
Ultimately, that proved to be the difference, as the Wildcats held on for a 55-48 win.
The visitors don’t have much height, but they are quick, and threatened to bust the game open early.
Trailing 24-12 and scrabbling a bit, Coupeville rediscovered its mojo, closing the first half on a 10-0 tear.
Downes and White combined to provide the offensive fireworks, while Davidson generated the loudest audience reaction of the night after drawing a charge down low.
Coupeville actually knotted the game up at 24-24, only to have its final bucket waved off for being a fraction too late.
Instead, the Wolves came out of the very-short halftime break down two and hung tough even as they begin to exhibit tired legs down the stretch.
The biggest killer in the second half was an inability to string together buckets, as CHS only notched back-to-back baskets once in the final 20 minutes.
That gave the Wildcats a bit of breathing room, and time and again, Oak Harbor hit shots when it needed them most, holding off its scrappy small-school rivals.
Blouin peppered the net for a pair of three-balls late, while White and Downes each made the twine jump on a long shot of their own.
Unfortunately, for Downes, his three-ball, coming on the game’s final play, was waved off like Davidson’s buzzer beater in the first half, falling victim to being .000001 of a second too late.
The Wolf senior-to-be still finished with a team-high 21 points, while White banked in 11 and Blouin knocked down eight.
Guay and Anderson rattled the rims for four apiece to finish off the attack.
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