Hunter Downes was a wild man on the boards Saturday in Sultan, as the Wolves battled to the wire in a close non-conference game. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
It was there, then it was gone.
After leading for much of the game Saturday, the Coupeville High School boys basketball squad went cold from the field late and paid for it, falling 54-49 at Sultan.
The non-conference defeat drops the Wolves to 4-9, but was a good test under fire for a team which now heads into the heart of Olympic League play.
CHS, which sits in a second-place tie with Klahowya at 2-1 in conference action, a game off of Port Townsend (4-1), plays three games in five days next week in a stretch which will tell much about their league title hopes.
The Wolves travel to Klahowya Tuesday, host Chimacum (0-5) Friday, then turn right back around and return to Silverdale Saturday for another match-up with the Eagles.
Facing a former Cascade Conference rival Saturday, Coupeville held its own with the Turks until a final, fateful minute and a half late in the fourth quarter.
Having used the world’s slowest 10-0 “run,” connecting on 10 consecutive free throws, the Wolves were clinging to a 44-42 lead with 2:30 to play.
Despite the fact that it hadn’t hit a field goal in nearly 11 minutes, Coupeville was where it wanted to be.
And then it all fell apart in a matter of seconds.
Give the Turks credit, as they won the game, and CHS didn’t lose it.
Sultan drained back-to-back three-balls from deep in the right corner, then added a reverse layup and three free throws, putting together an 11-0 surge to turn a nail-biter into a semi-runaway.
Hunter Smith knocked down two buckets in the final seconds, on a pull-up jumper and a long trey, but the damage was done by that point.
It was a bit of a disappointing end, after the Wolves looked so good for so long.
Dominating on the boards, with Hunter Downes crashing through the paint and cleaning the glass like a man on a mission, Coupeville escaped a low-scoring first quarter (7-4), then surged in the second.
Cameron Toomey-Stout buried a three-ball from the right side, followed by Smith notching the 700th point of his stellar career on a banker, and the Wolves were holding the Turks at bay.
Sultan got as close as a single point at 19-18, but Smith swished another jumper, before Ethan Spark drove a dagger through the heart of Turk Nation.
Collecting the ball on the right side, he faked, then pulled back and lofted a long trey, which caught all four sides of the rim (yes, a rim is round, go with it…) before flopping home.
Spark’s shot hit the bottom of the net just as the halftime buzzer sounded, sending Coupeville to the break up 24-18 and creating a buzz of dissatisfaction which rippled through the home fans.
The third quarter got off to a dramatic start, as the two teams combined to hit five straight three-balls, including two more from the locked-in Spark.
The second one pushed the Wolves up 30-21, marking their biggest lead of the game.
Enter the refs, who called everything, and I mean everything, sending both teams to the line a staggering amount of times.
That helped Sultan greatly, because the Turks, after missing all five of their free throws in the first half, suddenly got red-hot at the charity stripe.
Connecting on 9-10 freebies, including eight straight, Sultan regained the lead for the first time since it led 8-7 for three whole seconds in the first half.
Back in front 36-34 heading to the fourth, the Turks pushed the lead out to eight, before Coupeville responded with its own impressive display of free throw marksmanship.
Spark hit 6-6, while Joey Lippo and Smith each netted a pair during the Wolves 10-0 “run,” allowing them to finish 18-28 at the line on the night. Sultan went 13-21.
Smith’s late three-ball gave him a game-high 18, pushing his career total to 713. He is the 17th Wolf boy to top 700 points in the 101 years of CHS basketball.
His running mate, Spark, netted 15, which raises his season average to 11.1 points a night.
With Smith scoring at a 19.1 clip, the duo are combining to drop 30+ each game.
Lippo went off for six in support, while Toomey-Stout (5), Downes (4) and Dane Lucero (1) rounded out the scoring. Kyle Rockwell and Jered Brown also saw floor time.
Coupeville coach Brad Sherman would have preferred a win, but liked a lot of what he saw.
“Really thought we were going to pull that one out. Guys fought hard for that one,” he said. “Proud of that effort and their determination.
“Sultan shot the ball very well when they needed it and we just couldn’t respond there at the end.
“I thought our defense played well, mixing up looks and made it pretty hard on their guards at times,” Sherman added. “Boys did a nice job at the free throw line when it mattered. I love seeing that. A lot of positives heading into our next league game.”
Coupeville Sports 