Lynden Lions roar past Lindbergh, set up showdown with Anacortes

Shaking off a surprising regional-round loss last weekend, Lynden made short work of Lindbergh in the first round of the Class 2A boys state tournament Wednesday, polishing off the Eagles 57-43 at the Yakima Valley SunDome.

The Lions (18-6) will play league rival Anacortes in the quarterfinals Thursday at 2 p.m.. The Seahawks defeated Lynden in the teams’ lone meeting, the first league contest of the season for the Lions.

Lynden used three 3-pointers in the first five minutes to take a 17-11 lead. The Lions managed just one 3-pointer the rest of the way, but the early barrage set a tone and by halftime the Lions led 33-22.

More important than the early offensive fireworks, the Lions dominated the rebounding category 43-27. The advantage was 24-6 in the first half.

“That was job No. 1,” Lynden coach Brian Roper said. “We have struggled at times this year with that because we’re young and we’re skinny and we get pushed around. But tonight, we dominated them on the boards in the first half.”

Roper said he was concerned about that area and Lindbergh’s length coming into the game.

“We watched that team get 21 offensive rebounds against North Kitsap. That was our biggest concern, and I’m just so proud of all of our guys, but especially our guards for scrambling to get those rebounds,” he said.

Clayton Whitman led the Lions with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Andrew Kivlighn had 17 points. Lynden’s dominant rebounding was spread out. After Whitman, Lynden had two players with six rebounds and two with five.

Lynden also did an outstanding job of taking care of the ball against Lindbergh’s quick guards.

“I was also really pleased that we had so few live-ball turnovers,” Roper said. “With sophomore guards at the state tournament, it can be a little scary, but I thought our guys were solid.

“I thought we played under control, but we still had an attack mentality.”

Roper singled out Whitman for two key steals early in the third period that turned momentum on Lynden’s side and started the Lions toward what would eventually become a 21-point lead midway through the final period.

After coming into the postseason as the top-ranked RPI team in Class 2A, Lynden lost to Olympic 56-47 on Saturday and missed a chance at a first-round bye.

Roper marveled at the fickle nature of the tournament.

“We were one game from going home and now we’re in the round of eight,” he said with a smile.

Lynden 57, Lindbergh 43

LINDBERGH – Williams 3-11 1-2 7, Ellerbee 2-9 0-0 5, Davis 3-6 0-1 6, Dumas 2-4 0-5 5, Green 3-15 0-1 7, Campbell 0-0 0-0 0, Gray 0-0 0-0 0, Duncan II 3-3 0-2 7, Eshete 2-4 0-0 6, Williams 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-52 1-11 43.

LYNDEN – Clayton Whitman 8-17 2-3 18, Marsh 1-2 1-2 3, Elsner 0-1 1-2 1, Andrew Kivlighn 7-11 1-2 17, Zamora 4-14 0-1 9, Silves 0-2 3-4 3, House 0-0 0-0 0, Shine 1-1 3-4 6, LaBounty 0-2 0-0 0, Bode 0-0 0-0 0, Hope 0-1 0-0 0, Heppner 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 21-52 11-20 57.

3-point goals – Lindbergh 6-17 (Williams 0-2, Ellerbee 1-4, Davis 1-2, Green 1-6, Duncan II 1-1, Eshete 2-2), Lynden 4-14 (Whitman 0-1, Kivlighn 2-3, Zamora 1-5, Silves 0-2, Shine 1-1, Heppner 0-1). Fouled out – None. Rebounds – Lindbergh 27 (Davis 6, Green 6), Lynden 43 (Whitman 10). Assists – Lindbergh 5 (Eshete 2), Lynden 13 (Whitman 5). Turnovers – Lindbergh 14, Lynden 14. Total fouls – Lindbergh 19, Lynden 18.

This story was originally published March 1, 2017 at 5:21 PM with the headline "Lynden Lions roar past Lindbergh, set up showdown with Anacortes."