Kentwood eliminates Olympia behind Tagle’s 30-point performance

Kentwood High School basketball is about as synonymous with the Tacoma Dome as any school in the state of Washington. The Conks (14-8) are now one win closer to the state tournament after defeating Olympia (13-7), 66-53, on Feb. 13 in the opening round of the West Central District tournament.

“We had a really good week of practice and plan coming in. Then our guys executed it very, very well. Defensively I was pleased with what we did and how we were able to execute what we were trying to do. It was key in helping us pull this one out,” head coach Blake Solomon said.

It was possibly the best game plan, in terms of execution, that the Conks have utilized all season. Being able to prepare for 10 days was a significant help. The other was Kentwood star Brandon Tagle playing one of his best games of the season.

“I just go out there and play. I don’t really worry about stats a whole lot. Scoring is going to come. I just want to play a complete game, playing defense, both sides of the ball. It’s really important,” Tagle said.

Tagle finished with 30 points and was all over the floor in terms of assists and rebounds, and even picked up three steals for Kentwood. It was one of the more impressive performances in a catalog full of them.

“He just continues to amaze me with how good of a basketball player and how good of a kid he is. It really couldn’t happen to a better person than him or a better embodiment of what our program is about,” Solomon said. “We are down the final stretch here with him. We want to keep playing and getting to coach him.”

Kentwood is undermanned and undersized. Solomon deploys a seven player rotation and has just Caleb Ross as their big man, who is around 6 feet 6 inches tall. But against Olympia, Kentwood had no problem dealing with the personnel Olympia sent out on the floor.

Defensively, Kentwood doubled the Olympia bigs and interrupted the passing lanes all night. That was a huge reason for the Kentwood win.

“I feel like we are pretty physical on the perimeter and we got guys that aren’t afraid to muddy it up a little bit. They play through their post a lot. We did a good job of fronting and doubling when we needed to. Our guys really stepped up to the challenge, “ Solomon said.

Tagle started 0-for-3 from the floor on his first couple of shot attempts, but Ross picked up for the senior point guard. Ross finished with 16 points and came back with seven second half points after being shaken up on one of the most impressive blocks of the season. With 1:37 left in the first half, Ross leaped for a block to keep Kentwood in front by two, and he landed hard on his side and didn’t return in the first half.

“Caleb is our backbone, our energy guy. I saw that block and saw he was on the ground. He toughened up, came back in and helped us win the game,” Tagle said.

The Conks went into the locker rooms leading 34-28 and defensively were disrupting Olympia just enough. Senior AJ Gabriel played aggressive defense throughout the entire game, but in the first half he caused three turnovers that led to break away layups. Due to his aggressive style, Olympia was forced to double clutch passes and slow down their offensive approach.

“High school basketball comes down in the playoffs to seniors making plays. AJ might not be a high scorer, but he impacts the game immensely,” Solomon said.

The third quarter started with a Tagle three-ball to set the tone for the second half. Ross hit his third three-pointer with 6:00 left in the third quarter to put Kentwood up by 12 points, and the Conks never looked back.

With a trip to the state tournament and district semifinals on the line, Kentwood heads to Camas to take on the University of Iowa commit Ethan Harris and the Papermakers. Harris towers over the competition at 6-foot-8, but the Conks showed they can compete with anyone in the state.

“Ever since last year when we got knocked out of the state playoffs, we are looking to go back. No matter who is in front of us, whether it is Camas or anyone else, we are going to show up and compete,” Tagle said.

Bryson Manaway dribbles the ball between his legs for Kentwood. Ben Ray / The Reporter