Hale Ends League Title Drought with Resounding Win Over Garfield
By Steve Dion
| Friday- February 10th | 2017 | Boys | 3A | Metro Championship | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chief Sealth High School | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final | |
| Garfield | 10 | 6 | 25 | 17 | 58 | |
| Nathan Hale | 21 | 28 | 25 | 17 | 91 | |
Nathan Hale Senior Michael Porter Jr.
In their third (and likely not last) meeting of the season, top-ranked team in the country Nathan Hale would look to capture their first league title in 25 years against reigning champs Garfield. Following Hale’s 72-59 win in the semis against West Seattle which they trailed during long stretches, Coach Brandon Roy said the Wildcats, “woke us up” and stated it served as a reminder teams are going to challenge them every night. After escaping with a 4-point win on January 27th in front of a national audience, Garfield would look to keep the Metro League Championship trophy in the Central District by handing the Raiders their first loss of the season.
Nathan Hale dominated this game from the opening tip and in doing so put on a display for all in attendance. After taking a double-digit lead after on quarter, the margin continue to build up to the break in which the outcome of the ballgame was all but official heading into the locker room.
The one-two punch of the Porter Brothers Michael Jr. & Jontay accounted for 46 points of the team’s 49 in the first half alone!
On the other side, Garfield’s inability to convert on the offensive end led to a snowballing lack of confidence with each successive attempt. Jaylen Nowell still gutted out a respectable 18 points to lead his team, but foul trouble dashed Garfield’s hopes early continued throughout the ballgame.
With the second half merely a showcase of elite high school hoops talent, Hale sophomore P.J. Fuller ignited the crowd with a handful of acrobatic scoops and emphatic dunks.
Once the clock hit triple zeros, Brandon Roy accomplished something that hadn’t been done since before his playing days which was bring a Metro League Championship to Nathan Hale.
As for Garfield, they’ll bounce back from Friday’s game because they know they’ll see the Raiders down the road very soon.
The Final Score
Nathan Hale 91, Garfield 58
Top Performers:
Nathan Hale
Michael Porter Jr.- 39 points
Garfield
Jaylen Nowell- 18 points