Here is an update on the regional basketball tournament, taking place in Sitka.
The top-seeded Juneau-Douglas Lady Crimson Bears were rested and rock-solid, as they took down the Ketchikan Lady Kings, 49-33, in the second round of the 3A regional tournament in Sitka this week.
The first-round bye for Juneau might have made the difference in Wednesday’s game. The Lady Kings traded baskets in the first quarter, which ended with Juneau ahead 13-12. But Ketchikan had trouble finding the basket in the next two periods.
Juneau senior Gabi Fenumiai led all scorers with 18 points before fouling out in the fourth quarter. Juneau had consistent scoring from its bench as well. Nine of the twelve players on the squad put up points for the Lady Crimson Bears.
Kayhi also had balanced scoring from seven players, but no one reached double-digits. After struggling through the second and third periods, the Lady Kings woke up in the fourth quarter, outscoring Juneau behind seven points by Junior Brooke Simmons, and three clutch free-throws from sophomore Alexis Biggerstaff. But the effort was not enough to break Juneau’s momentum.
The Lady Crimson Bears will play in the 4A final Friday at 3 PM. The Kayhi girls drop to the losers’ bracket, and will meet Thunder Mountain Thursday morning at 8 AM.
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The top-seeded Thunder Mountain boys also used their first-round bye to advantage, beating the Ketchikan Kings 55 – 33 in the second round.
Like the Lady Kings, the Ketchikan boys also waited until the fourth period to make things interesting. Junior Isaiah Navales sprang to life and scored two field goals and a free throw. Sophomore Alex Pihl also scored four of his six total points in the fourth period.
In all, nine of the twelve players on the Ketchikan team scored, but no one was red-hot.
That was not the case with Thunder Mountain, which had two players in double digits. Junior Matt Seymour led all scorers with 19 points. Senior Sam Jahn put 10, dropping 6 of 10 free throws.
Thunder Mountain now advances to the final at 4:45 p.m. Friday. Ketchikan drops to the losers’ bracket and will play Juneau-Douglas at 9:45 a.m. Thursday morning.
