BELLEVUE, Wash. — Walla Walla Community College drew the lines here, topping Shoreline on Friday, 94-82, and stopping Highline, 77-73, on Saturday in the Bulldog Classic men’s basketball tournament.
The Warriors moved to 6-0 entering a 3 p.m. tourney championship contest against Chemeketa, a 79-65 winner over tournament host Bellevue in Saturday’s nightcap..
“It’s another tough one tomorrow and we’re pretty tired,” WWCC coach Jeff Reinland said after his team’s narrow victory Saturday. “We’ll get some rest and get our wits about us.”
WWCC led Highline by 10 at the half, 35-25, and the Warriors stretched the advantage to 16 points before the Thunderbirds came back to take a lead late in the game. Landon Radliff nailed a three-pointer with two minutes left to put the Warriors up by one. Highline reclaimed a one-point lead before Marcus McKone hit a big three with 20 seconds remaining. The Warriors’ Gary Engstrom tipped a Highline miss, and Damen Thacker hit two free throws to seal the win.
“We really struggled inside,” Reinland said. “They (the Thunderbirds) are just so big and were blocking all of our shots.”
Still, WWCC held a 41-39 rebounding edge, with Engstrom collecting a team-high 10 boards. The Warriors’ Brandon Porter led all scorers with 22.
Shoreline’s Terrell Brown, Jr. went off for a game-high 38 on Friday, but the Northwest Athletic Conference’s leading scorer launched 35 shots – nearly half of his team’s 78-attempt total. WWCC was led in scoring by Radliff with 29 points on 11-22 shooting from the field. McKone had 23 and Thacker hit for 20, while Jake Albright snared a game-high 17 rebounds.
WWCC led 50-37 at halftime and stretched the margin to 18, but Shoreline pulled within four on two occasions.
“It was a pretty good game,” Reinland said. “We made a few mental lapses against the press.” Shoreline employed a full-court press, “kind of a 1-2-2,” Reinland added.
WWCC 94, Shoreline 82
WWCC (94) — Porter, Thacker 20, Radliff 29, Watson 13, Engstrom 4, Tiller, Smith, Anderson, Albright 5, McKone 23. Totals 33-71 12-19 94.
Shoreline (82) — Brown 38, French 10, Barry 15, George 7, Gorbenko 3, Muhammed 6, Tierney, Domingos, Nuguse 3. Totals 34-78 9-18 82.
Halftime — WWCC, 50-37. 3-point goals — WWCC 16, Shoreline 5. Total fouls — WWCC 15, Shoreline 19. Fouled out — none. Technical fouls — none. Rebounds — WWCC 52, Shoreline 36. Turnovers — WWCC 21, Shoreline 13. Assists — WWCC 15, Shoreline 7.
WWCC 77, Highline 73
Highline (73) — Vanderhazel 3, Green 4, Singleton 11, Harris 13, Holmes, Brown 2, Potter 4, Hester 13, Rothwell 15, Rice 5, Hudson 3. Totals 25-61 17-23 73.
WWCC (94) — Porter 22, Thacker 11, Radliff 12, Watson 6, Engstrom 7, Tiller, Anderson, Albright 4, McKone 15. Totals 30-74 7-12 77.
Halftime — WWCC, 35-25. 3-point goals — Highline 17, WWCC 7. Total fouls — Highline 15, WWCC 17. Fouled out — Highline, Hester. Technical fouls — none. Rebounds — Highline 39, WWCC 41. Turnovers — Highline 9, WWCC 8. Assists — Highline 6, WWCC 15.
Union Bulletin
