Lake Washington Cruises Past Sammamish

Posted on December 12, 2015 by Steven Dion

Lake Washington Cruises Past Sammamish
By Steve Dion

Friday- December 11th	2015	Boys	3A	KingCo
Sammamish High School	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final
Sammamish	9	8	18	21	56
Lake Washington	19	23	21	20	83

Lake Washington Sophomore Abi Kameric

The nightcap of Friday night hoops at Sammamish High School featured the host Totems and the Lake Washington Kangaroos. The Kangs jumped out to an early lead primarily due to Sahil Basra’s three buckets from downtown. If not for a Justin Jordan hustle play to throw up a fadeaway from a miss at the first-quarter buzzer, the Totems would have lacked any sense of momentum moving forward. LWHS continued to roll in the second frame when Abi Kameric matched Basra by knocking down a trio of triples of his own. Additionally, the Kangs rebounded well and did not allow for multiple chances for the Totems. At the break Lake Washington led 42-17.

Sammamish was able to outmatch their first half total in the third quarter alone by logging eighteen points in the quarter, but LW kept the pedal down and continued to extend their lead. There was a sequence in transition for the Kangs where a lead pass in transition to Sam Linsky was dished behind the back for an open bucket. Sammamish closed strong by putting together a series of possessions where they came up with two quick steals following an initial bucket by Nate Aebi for three field goals in a very short period of time. However, the Kangs led wire to wire and cruised to a double digit victory on the road.

The Final Score
Lake Washington 83, Sammamish 56

Top Performers:
Lake Washington
Sahil Basra- 26 points

Sammamish
Justin Jordan- 13 points

Lady Kangs Roll Over Totems

Posted on December 12, 2015 by Steven Dion

Lady Kangs Roll Over Totems
By Steve Dion

Friday- December 11th	2015	Girls	3A	KingCo
Sammamish High School	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final
Sammamish	3	14	9	11	37
Lake Washington	17	17	6	9	49

Lake Washington Lady Kangs

Lake Washington earned a league victory on Friday night after gaining a double digit lead in the first quarter. The Kangs frontcourt combination of Hanna Brender & Georgia Romine-Black helped LW jump out to a 34-17 lead after the first half. Totem coach Mike Schick made second adjustments that allowed Sammamish to cut down the Kang lead as the game progressed, but the contributions of Aleyah Bennett and Alliyah Shinaul were not quite enough to bring the home team within striking distance of their KingCo opponent.

The difference maker in this game was Lake Washington’s ability to dial up from long distance early and grab offensive rebounds for second chance put-backs to create enough separation by halftime that a late Sammamish run would not jeopardize their lead. Credit the Totems for winning the second-half scoring margin, but they will need balance for four quarters as league play heats up.

The Final Score
Lake Washington 49, Sammamish 37

Bellevue Spoils Kangs’ Senior Night, Remains Undefeated in KingCo

Posted on January 31, 2014 by colincarusoZUMA

Tuesday	Jan 28th	2014	3A	Boys	Basketball
Lake Washington High	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final
Bellevue	21	11	7	14	53
Lake Washington	9	11	8	13	41

Bellevue Spoils Kangs’ Senior Night, Remains Undefeated in KingCo
By Steven Dion

Winning league games on the road this time of the high school hoops season is a tall task. The Bellevue Wolverines (11-0 league, 14-2 overall) were set to face off against the Lake Washington Kangaroos (9-2, 12-4) on senior night. In order for BHS to pick up their fifth win away from Wolverine Way and stay unbeaten in KingCo play, they would need to weather the storm brought by the Kangs on Tuesday night.

The first quarter of this ball game was dominated by the visitors as Bellevue picked up a double digit lead after eight minutes of play. Their choice to play the Kangs man-to-man on the defensive side of the ball showcased their size advantage and led to numerous turnovers. Chris O’Connor’s Wolverines were lethal in transition early as precision passing primarily through junior guard Kyle Foreman led to scoring in bunches. LWHS coach Ryan Staudacher called a timeout after trailing 26-9 and was able to motivate his guys to go into halftime with a pulse. A much-needed 11-6 run to close the second quarter left the visitors leading by a dozen with much work needed by the Kangaroos to climb back into the contest.

Refusing to let this game spiral out of control, Lake Washington was motivated to close the gap in the final sixteen minutes of play. The Kangaroos were able to limit Bellevue to only 7 points in the third quarter, but failure to capitalize by scoring only 8 with such a sizable deficit hindered the comeback. A critical moment in the game was a blocking foul called on Jamal Muhammad with LWHS trailing by single digits. After two made free throws, the Bellevue lead was back to 11. In the final quarter, the Kangs would catch some fire from three point range as senior Jeffrey Staudacher brought his team within 7. However, a gutsy response by BHS junior K. Foreman in the form of a floater took the wind out of the home team’s sail. A putback and one by Dylan Foreman was the cherry on top for the Wolverines as the guests picked up a quality win by the final score of 53-41. Timely responses to LWHS runs shows that Bellevue will be a tough contender come postseason.

Top Performer:
Bellevue
Kyle Foreman-Bellevue-18 points (7/11 FG’s), 5 assists

W.F. West Bounds over Kangaroos in Rebel Challenge

Posted on January 3, 2014 by colincarusoZUMA

Saturday	Dec 28th	2013	3A-2A	Girls	Basketball
Juanita High	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final
W.F. West	15	7	10	15	47
Lake Washington	4	9	10	15	38

See game recap below

W.F. West Bounds over Kangaroos in Rebel Challenge
By Steven Dion

Day two of the round robin format of the Rebel Classic at Juanita High School featured a 2A showdown between Lake Washington and the Lady Bearcats of W.F. West. The KingCo League Kangs would have their hands full in this matchup as their Evergreen League counterpart has two 6’3” posts in Nike McClure and Tiana Parker. If Lake Washington could tread water in the rebounding department and knock down shots consistently, they would be able to challenge W.F. West in this contest.

The Bearcats owned the first quarter on both sides of the ball. Scoring was dispersed among five players in the first eight minutes. Meanwhile, the Kangs stumbled out of the gate by going field goal-less in the first frame. Four free throws by Sydney Shepard culminated all of LW’s offense as they trailed 15-4 after quarter one. Kang head coach Corey Shepard was able to rally the troops after the slow start by outscoring the opposition in the second quarter. Carly Rataushk was strong on the boards for Lake Washington setting up scoring opportunities for her offense. A quarter filled with changes in possession led to a slim 9-7 scoring total in favor of the Kangs. At the half, W.F. West was ahead 22-13.

Playing catch up in the final sixteen minutes meant LWHS would have to push the tempo and finish at the hoop. Rataushk stayed tough among the tall trees on the Bearcat roster by netting seven points in the third quarter. Unfortunately, secondary scoring options were relatively absent for the Kangs. W.F. West protected their lead throughout the third and entered the final eight with their nine point lead. Lake Washington’s fifteen points in the fourth could have been enough to close the gap, but failure to get defensive stops hindered their ability to challenge the Bearcats. W.F. West also registered fifteen in the quarter to pick up the 47-38 victory.

Top Performer:
Lake Washington
Carly Rataushk – 13 points (3/5 FT’s)