The Kentlake High boys basketball team hit a wall Tuesday night with a South Puget Sound League North Division playoff berth on the line.
Needing a win over Auburn Riverside to keep its postseason hopes alive, Kentlake fell flat. Auburn Riverside’s Ryan Rogers torched the Falcons for a game-high 21 points and Dustin Hegge came off the bench to chip in 19, leading the Ravens past Kentlake 76-61.
The loss eliminated the Falcons (6-9 in league, 8-10 overall) from playoff contention.
“We came out flat. I don’t know (why),” said Kentlake coach Ron Charrier. “We discussed not getting out to a slow start. We discussed coming out with intensity and playing hard the entire game. We came out flat and they took it to us.”
The Falcons came into the night needing a win to remain alive for the SPSL North’s fifth-and-final playoff berth. A win would not have clinched the final playoff spot, but it would have put Kentlake in the driver’s seat with just one game remaining.
Had Thomas Jefferson (6-10, 7-12) upset Kentridge on Tuesday night, Kentlake’s postseason aspirations would have remained faintly alive despite the loss as there would have been a possibility of a three-way tie for fifth.
Instead, the Raiders lost to the Chargers 58-54.
Kentlake can still forge a tie for fifth place with Auburn Riverside (7-8 in league, 10-9 overall) with a win over Kentwood on Friday. The Ravens, however, have beaten the Falcons twice this year, thus breaking any possible tie.
After the win, Auburn Riverside coach Tom Adams finally was able to relax.
“Sense of relief? Absolutely,” he said. “I am very proud of the kids. This was hard.”
Rogers ignited the Ravens from the beginning, scoring his team’s first eight points as Auburn Riverside built an immediate 8-5 lead and never looked back.
Auburn Riverside’s hot early shooting and Kentlake’s lack of an offensive spark proved to be the difference. The Ravens went 5 for 5 from 3-point land in the first quarter to take a 26-11 lead. Rogers scored 11 of those 26 points.
And while the Ravens were plenty hot from the outside, Kentlake didn’t do itself any favors, turning the ball over eight times in the first quarter alone.
The Falcons didn’t get any closer than 15 points until the fourth quarter, when Tyler Wright sparked a 30-16 game-ending run. Wright came off the bench to score a team-high 15 points, 12 of which came in the final eight minutes.
“Tyler played his heart out,” Charrier said. “He was our emotional leader, the guy who hustled all over the floor. He was the one who wanted it.”
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