The Bear Creek School boys’ basketball team made a big statement toward being one of the top 2B teams in the state after coming from behind to beat 3A Eastside Catholic, 57-53, in front of a packed house at The Bear Creek School on Saturday night.

Down by as many as 13 at one point due to a prolonged second-quarter shooting skid, the Grizzlies fought back late in the game and scored 17 in the fourth quarter, highlighted by two breakaway layins by senior guard Jamie Meyer and a pair of clutch three-pointers by sharpshooting junior guard Lucas Peterson.

“We had a scoring drought there in the second quarter,” said Grizzlies’ head coach Scott Moe. “We just could not score, but our guys just kept fighting and fighting and did a great job.”

EARLY STRUGGLES

On paper, the tall and physical Crusaders, led by 6-foot-7 sophomore Joey Schreiber, definitely held a size advantage and it showed early in the game.

Schreiber scored 12 of his team’s first 15 points as the Crusaders jumped out to an early lead, which ballooned to 29-16 after the Grizzlies were held scoreless through the first three minutes and 16 seconds of the second period.

At a time when the game could have gotten out of control, the home team drained four of its last five field goals in the second quarter to narrow the gap.

Despite shooting just 13 of 31 in the first half, Eastside Catholic headed into the locker room with a slim 33-28 lead and set the stage for an action-packed finish.

CRUSADERS GET COLD

The Crusaders’ second-half game plan to work the perimeter backfired as they fired up five three-pointers early in the third quarter, each one clanging off the rim.

Their cold shooting allowed the Grizzlies to get back into the game in the fourth quarter, as Peterson’s third three-pointer of the game tied the game up at 43-43 with six minutes left to play.

Coming down the stretch, the Grizzlies put the ball in the hands of their go-to guy, Meyer, who scored two straight baskets off of pinpoint passes as the Grizzlies built a 48-44 lead.

“That was the turning point, we ran two set plays for (Jamie) and we got layins,” said an ecstatic Moe. “From there on out, we played really smart. We hit our free throws tonight. That was a fun environment, man.”

The Grizzlies shot 17 of 21 from the line, including Meyer and Peterson both hitting a pair with less than a minute left to keep the game just out of the Crusaders’ reach.

“We did a great job executing, especially on the inside with our passing,” said Meyer, who posted a double-double with a game-high 27 points and 11 rebounds. “I think the difference really came from our defense and our rebounding. I think they weren’t able to match our intensity on that end, but props to them, they played a real hard game.”

Peterson added 15 points, and senior guard Kyle Blankenbeckler contributed 13 assists, with Eastside Catholic being led by Schreiber’s 24 points.

RIDING THE WAVE

After their loss to 4A Lake Washington back on December 16, the Bear Creek boys have now won five straight to improve to 9-1 overall. The Grizzlies, who are 1-0 in Sea-Tac 2B play, are anxious to play league foes after a rigorous non-league schedule.

“We purposely scheduled good, quality teams,” Moe explained. “All along we’re just trying to become the very best that we possibly can be… and these guys gave us everything that we could handle.”

Meyer and Peterson are currently leading the league in scoring at 18.0 and 16.3 points per game, respectively, and also have a strong supporting cast of players like Blankenbeckler, and 6-foot-6 forward Ryan Strandin, who contributed 13 points in the win over the Crusaders.

Add to that the fact that Grizzlies are back and healthy, and you have a recipe for a team that may be playing basketball well into March.

“Early on, for the first three weeks, we had guys out with flu, staph infections, ankle sprains,” said Moe. “We’re now finally starting to come together, but I don’t think we’ve peaked yet.”

Added Meyer, “We are confident, but we’re not going to overlook anybody. We’ll just take it one day at a time and enjoy it.”

To view more pictures from this game, visit photographer Matt Campbell’s Web site at http://www.sportspixs.com