Alex Murdy knocked down 14 points Saturday, one of four Wolves to score in double digits in a big Coupeville win. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)
Attack as a pack.
Two games into the season, the Coupeville High School varsity boys basketball squad has proven to be very balanced, and very dangerous.
After toppling 3A Oak Harbor in their opener, the Wolves returned to the floor Saturday and came within a point of having five players score in double-digits.
Romping to a 71-53 non-conference win over fellow 2B school Forks — in a game it led by as many as 30 points — Coupeville improved to a sterling 2-0 heading into the start of league play.
The Wolves next four games, three of which will be on the road, pit them against Northwest 2B/1B League rivals.
Coupeville came within a half-game of a conference title during a Covid-altered season this spring, and coach Brad Sherman and his team want to finish the mission this time out.
So far, the Wolves have more than looked ready, as they have used a withering defense, a willingness to share the ball on offense, and an appreciation for the intangibles of the game to impress their home fans.
Saturday’s tilt was close, for about four to five minutes, and then Coupeville seized control.
The Wolves went up 6-5 on a hanger in the paint from Grady Rickner — a bucket which gave the steady senior his 100th career varsity point — and CHS never relinquished the lead after that.
The first quarter was a prime example of what this team can do when it’s clicking, as six different players dropped in points during a game-opening 23-13 run.
Hawthorne Wolfe buried a three-ball from the cheap seats, then picked the ball at midcourt and spun in for a layup on the very next play.
But it was the rampagin’ Murdy boys who let Forks know the drive home would be a long, sad one, as they terrorized the Spartans into frequent turnovers.
Alex Murdy tossed in a team-high eight points in the first frame, dipping and diving and flipping the ball off the glass with style, while older brother Xavier was, as always, the rock.
Hauling down rebound after rebound, poking balls free, then getting out on the break, X-Man attacked from every angle, earning a slight nod of approval from low-key uncle, and former Wolf hoops great, Allen Black.
Xavier Murdy sliced ‘n diced the Forks defense, just as he did against Oak Harbor.
The best bucket of the first quarter was a Murdy mashup, as Alex flipped a pass across his body to Xavier while flying down the sideline, then pumped his fist as his brother banked the ball home.
The second quarter was where the dam broke, and Forks got washed away in the ensuing flood.
Coupeville senior Logan Martin opened the frame by lofting in a gorgeous three-ball from the left side, then the Wolf defense got savage.
The game jumped from 34-21 to 48-21 in the blink of an eye, as most of Sherman’s defensive dreams came true one after another.
Jumping on the ballhandlers while backed by the increasing roar of a pro-Wolf crowd, CHS ripped off steals, and converted those thefts into buckets, so quickly I almost didn’t get all the plays written down in my notebook.
Almost.
The onslaught was an equal opportunity feast, with five Wolves scoring in the game-busting 14-0 run to end the half.
Logan Downes got the biggest roar, banging home a twisting three-ball, while a bucket from Wolfe was a major moment in the program’s 105-year history.
Those two points, almost lost in the barrage, allowed Hawk to move into 20th place on the all-time CHS boys basketball career scoring list, passing legendary early 2000’s gunner Chris Good.
Coupeville briefly stretched the lead out to 30 points coming out of the halftime break, with Wolfe burying another three-ball, then the Wolves relaxed a bit and coasted in for the win.
Forks still trailed by 27 with a little under three minutes to play, before using a 9-0 surge at the end to make the final score seem like slightly less of a blowout.
With Coupeville’s bench players on the floor, another milestone was achieved as Dominic Coffman recorded his first varsity basket.
The Wolf junior, who had a breakout season on the football gridiron this fall, rippled the net on a sweet lil’ runner in the paint, then immediately turned and scrambled back on defense in a move sure to please coaches in both sports.
Wolfe led Coupeville’s balanced attack, netting a team-high 16 points, while Alex Murdy (14), Xavier Murdy (13), and Downes (10) were hot on his heels.
Caleb Meyer (9), Rickner (4), Martin (3), and Coffman (2) also scored as the Wolves broke 70 points for the second-straight game.
Cole White and Jonathan Valenzuela rounded out the CHS players to see floor time, with Valenzuela making his season debut.
Coupeville opens league play next Friday, Dec. 10, when it welcomes Darrington to town.
After that, the Wolves hit the road for NWL games against Orcas Island (Dec. 11), Concrete (Dec. 14), and Mount Vernon Christian (Dec. 17).
A non-conference clash with next-door neighbor South Whidbey (Dec. 18) wraps the 2021 part of the 2021-2022 hoops season.
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