In a non-league holiday showdown against 1A University Prep, The Bear Creek School boys’ basketball team (1-0, 4-0 overall) pulled out a 62-60 win, thanks to some clutch shooting at the charity stripe.
From the second quarter on, the game was a back-and-forth affair. The Pumas trailed 28-26 at halftime, but University Prep shot 7 for 9 from the field in the third quarter to pull within 43-42, setting up the dramatic fourth quarter.
Grizzly freshman guard Luke Blankenbeckler, who scored 27 points last Friday in a blowout win against Crosspoint, was the star of the fourth quarter. He drained three shots from beyond the arc and later hit two clutch free throws with 10.4 ticks left on the clock to give the Grizzlies a 61-58 lead.
With both teams in foul trouble, Bear Creek head coach Scott Moe opted to foul the Pumas rather than let them try a game-tying three. “We wanted them to shoot free throws and then hopefully when they missed, get the board,” said Moe on his team’s strategy during the final seconds. “I think they made nine threes on the game, so we didn’t want to give them any more shots at that.”
The strategy worked as the Pumas made 1 of 2 free throws to pull within two, 61-59.
Then with 5.5 seconds left, Bear Creek senior post Ryan Strandin made a huge free throw to extend the lead back to three, one of seven foul shots he made on the night.
In a must-make, one-and-one situation with five seconds left, the Pumas made the first free throw and the second rattled in and out, falling into a mass of Grizzly players as time expired, setting off a celebration by Bear Creek fans.
“That was just a great game for our guys,” Moe said. “We got some areas that we’ve go to shore up on, but we also did a lot of things well. Our guys competed well, and when things didn’t go our way, we kept our poise.”
Blankenbeckler finished with a game-high 20, including going 6-for-9 from downtown. Strandin made some athletic moves all night, scoring 15, and fellow senior Lucas Peterson contributed 12.
“He’s young, but he’s a clutch player,” Moe said of Blankenbeckler, adding that junior forward Erik Domas, at 6-5, has really improved and stepped up his game.
Though the game was closer than the team would have liked, the Grizzlies, perennially one of the top-ranked teams at the 2B level, cherished the opportunity to play in a game where every possession made a difference. In their three previous victories this season, they have won by an average of 29 points.
“It’s really important to handle adversity, because it helps us gel together as a team…. helps us grow together,” Peterson said after the win. “It’s great playing against the better competition… we have to bring it, night in and night out. It will really help us.”
And if Moe could do anything about it, he’d have his team play a program of University Prep’s caliber every night.
He put together a beast of a schedule for the Grizzlies, which includes three consecutive games twice over the holiday break against potent competition, mostly from 3A and 4A schools.
“We’re trying to simulate state,” Moe explained. “Before tonight we practiced 25 times and had only three games, so our guys are like, ‘Let’s just play!’ Next week in the (Bellevue College) tournament, we’ll be against three really good teams.”
The Grizzlies last played on Wednesday night against 2A Black Hills after the Reporter’s deadline, and kick off the Bellevue College Holiday Tournament on Tuesday night against Oak Harbor.
