Recaps, highlights from the opening round of 4A and 3A state boys basketball tournaments
Between the Class 4A and 3A boys state tournaments, 30 high school basketball games will be played in the Tacoma Dome this weekend. The News Tribune will be at all of them, providing game recaps, highlights, interviews, stats and more.
Follow along for live updates from Wednesday’s opening round winner-to-quarterfinals, loser-out games.
CLASS 4A
Round of 12 -- Winner-to-quarterfinals
No. 3 GLACIER PEAK 49, No. 14 ARLINGTON 42
When No. 14 Arlington raced to a seven-point lead in the opening minutes and threatened an early-morning upset at the Tacoma Dome, Glacier Peak’s Josiah “Jo” Lee came alive.
The Grizzlies shooting guard was comfortable in the midrange, a threat from three, and darted coast-to-coast in transition — the No 3. Grizzlies’ engine in Wednesday’s 49-42 win over Arlington in the 4A Round of 12.
“We just came out a little slow,” Lee told The News Tribune. “Morning game (9 a.m.), you know how it is. They wanted it more than us in the beginning, I’ll give that to them.”
Then everything clicked.
Lee dropped a game-high 26 points (10-18 FG), wing Jayce Nelson scored 12 points with six rebounds, and sophomore post Zachary Albright added seven points and nine rebounds.
The Grizzlies were an efficient 55 percent from the field in the second half, enough to fend off multiple Arlington runs. Lee outdueled Arlington star Leyton Martin (12 PTS, 11 REB, 4 AST) in a clash between two of the state’s best guards.
“My teammates were getting me the ball… and they were going in,” Lee said.
Glacier Peak moves to Thursday’s 4A quarterfinals with No. 5 Camas at the Tacoma Dome. Tipoff is set for 9 a.m.
No. 2 AUBURN 56, No. 10 OLYMPIA 45
Auburn wanted no part of another early exit from the Tacoma Dome.
Stunned as 3A’s top seed by Lincoln (Tacoma) in last year’s bracket, the Trojans righted the ship and cruised in Wednesday morning’s 56-45 win over No. 10 Olympia, pushing Auburn to Thursday’s 4A quarterfinals.
“It feels great to get (the first round) out of the way and not feel that hurt again,” Auburn guard Daniel Johnson said. “I had that replayed in my head, last year’s (loss). I just kept playing.”
Johnson dropped a game-high 23 points with four rebounds, wing Miles Henry scored 12 points with six rebounds, and point guard Carter Hansen added 11 points and two assists.
Auburn willed their way to the paint with ease or kicked out to Johnson, Wednesday’s three-level scorer with smooth handles and the ability to create his own shots. Hansen facilitated the show, feeding interior threats Miles Henry and six-foot-seven wing Isaiah Englund.
When Hansen drew his fourth foul and sat for most of the third quarter, Olympia found their groove – but Auburn found the answer. The Bears cut their deficit to as little as four points, 48-44, with 5:17 to play until Johnson powered inside, rebounded his own miss, and delivered a clutch putback through a Bears foul for a three-point play. A massive Olympia student section in the hundreds fell silent.
“We just strung a couple of stops together, and were able to finish with our rebounds,” Trojans head coach Ryan Hansen said. “When (Olympia) was making their run, it wasn’t the first shot but the second shot.
“We talked about finishing possessions and rebounding, and I thought we did a good job of that.”
Johnson finished 4-of-5 from downtown, Carter Hansen’s co-star after former Trojans standout Jaylen Petty transferred to Rainier Beach ahead of the 2024-25 season.
“Daniel can score the ball,” Ryan Hansen said. “He can score on all three levels. He’s gotten better defensively for us, which we needed him to be. … He’s really matured into a high-level player, for sure.”
We’ll see a matchup between the tournament’s top seeds in Thursday’s 4A quarterfinals: No. 1 Gonzaga Prep vs. No. 2 Auburn. Tipoff is set for 10:30 a.m.
No. 4 RICHLAND 63, No. 13 EMERALD RIDGE 54
Don’t count out the lightning-quick Bombers.
Richland turned on the jets in transition, junior guard Landen Northrop had a game-high 29 points, and the No. 4 Bombers pulled away in the final minutes for a 63-54 win over No. 13 Emerald Ridge on Wednesday afternoon at the Tacoma Dome.
“It’s just a Richland thing,” Northrop said of their quickness. “We always get out and run. We’re fast.”
Northrop was everywhere, the focal point of Richland’s offense from every level, and backcourt-mate Lance Horntvedt completed a three-point play with just 17.9 seconds remaining, sealing Wednesday’s Round of 12 clash in style.
Northrop finished with 29 points, seven rebounds, and four assists. Horntvedt scored 15 points with six rebounds and sophomore guard Jackson Woodard added seven points.
Jaguars guard Jordan Bennett paced Emerald Ridge with 19 points, including a first-half buzzer beater from the perimeter that cut Richland’s lead to five at intermission. Standout forward Jamaize McGriff posted a 17-point, 10-rebound double-double.
McGriff’s top highlight? A vicious swat inside the paint on Richland’s Northrop early in the fourth quarter.
“They were playing really physical, but I was able to drive through them and play physical, (too),” Northrop said.
Richland advances to Thursday’s 4A quarterfinals with No. 6 West Valley in their quest to return to Saturday’s 4A championship. The Bombers fell to Mount Si last year in the title game, 72-58.
“We want it really bad,” Northrop said. “You hate the feeling of losing, especially in the championship game. It’s been on my mind all year. I just want to win it all.”
No. 8 PUYALLUP 64, No. 9 DAVIS 60
Puyallup trailed, 60-58, as the final 20 seconds of Wednesday’s 4A Round of 12 clock ticked down — but Drew Jones has these Vikings believing.
The senior point guard rolled right, stepped back, and drained the game-tying, midrange jumper with 11 seconds left, sending Puyallup fans in the northeast corner of the Tacoma Dome into a frenzy. Davis deciding not to call timeout and let point guard Cesar Hernandez race to the other end for the final shot.
Puyallup’s Will Nasinec had other plans.
The junior post rejected Hernandez’s potential game-winner, but there would be no overtime: Davis fouled Nasinec in a wrestle for the steal. Instead, two free throws with 0.9 seconds to go for Puyallup’s interior big. It left one half of the Tacoma Dome jumping for joy, the other half stunned.
Multiple Pirates collapsed onto the court in disbelief. Nasinec sank his first free throw, the go-ahead shot, and turned to the crowd ready for noise.
“I was expecting overtime, and they hit (Will),” Jones told The News Tribune. “We got kind of lucky there, but Will was clutch with the free throws.
“We had to make sure we stayed composed in that we were going to end up with the dub. Just make sure we weren’t going too far. I hit the shot, tied it, and down the stretch, we hit shots.”
A technical foul on Davis stretched the score, but it was Jones’ heroics and Nasinec’s free throw that lifted the Vikings over the Pirates, 64-60, in Wednesday’s Round of 12.
Jones dropped a game-high 26 points, Nasinec poured in 20, and the Vikings danced to Thursday’s 4A state quarterfinals at the Tacoma Dome.
“We’ve been in these situations before. All season, multiple games,” Jones said. “We know what it’s like. Other teams are going to go on runs, and we just know that we’ve got to stay composed and not let the game go too fast. Just let the game come to us, and everything will work out.”
A physical game with 45 total fouls, Vikings wing Isaiah Sonntag set the tone with Puyallup’s first six points inside and finished with 11 points and four rebounds. Nasinec posted a 20-point, 12-rebound double-double with an assist.
Hernandez paced Davis with 18 points.
Puyallup meets No. 7 Mount Si, the defending 4A champion, in Thursday’s quarterfinals at 2 p.m.
3A BOYS
No. 6 Lincoln 53, No. 14 Federal Way 48
It won’t show up on the stat sheet in the points category, but Lincoln freshman forward Justus Holt delivered an MVP caliber performance in Lincoln’s opening-round 53-48 win over Federal Way in the Class 3A state tournament at the Tacoma Dome on Wednesday evening.
His line: five points, five rebounds, four blocked shots and a steal. Beyond that, who knows how many altered Federal Way shots in the paint defensively and perhaps above all else, Holt just had a presence. Nothing easy was going to come at the rim against him or the Abes.
“Huge,” Lincoln coach Ryan Rogers said of his freshman’s performance. “And that’s what we try to preach to the kids, because kids get so caught up on getting buckets and scoring. There’s so many other ways you can impact the game.”
Not a bad Tacoma Dome debut for Lincoln’s freshman, and it’s scary to think where Holt could be in a few years time if he continues on his current trajectory.
“I feel great right now,” Holt said. “The intensity going up every time.”
Lincoln trailed against Federal Way a couple weeks ago in the bidistrict tournament semifinals before mounting a late comeback and stealing a win. This time around, Lincoln led most of the game. The lesson learned from the first meeting was to play freely.
“Don’t get in our heads,” Holt said. “Just have confidence when we shoot and play defense.”
Freshman guard Davion Shareef-Dulaney scored 11, sophomore guard Trey Collier and junior forward Kasey Williams added 10 apiece and the team’s leading scorer came off the bench: sophomore guard Uriah Wilson, who made four of his five 3-point attempts, including a clutch three in the fourth quarter.
“Be ready for your opportunity,” Rogers said. “O’Shea (Lamar) got two quick fouls so we needed somebody to step up. Uriah came first with his defense and that just gives you that confidence to let it fly when you get those open opportunities.”
Federal Way guard Brayden McVey scored a game-high 20 points, but Federal Way struggled offensively as a team, shooting just 32.2 percent from the field and going 0-for-11 from beyond the arc.
Still, the Eagles cut the Abes’ lead to two points with under a minute to play, but Shareef-Dulaney iced the game late with a pair of free throws.
Lincoln features two juniors and no seniors on its roster, one of the state’s youngest top teams. But the Abes aren’t hoping to build for the future; Lincoln wants to win it all now, this weekend.
“We got that dawg in us,” Holt said. “We can’t be scared of no one.”
Edmonds-Woodway awaits in the 3A quarterfinals on Thursday at the Tacoma Dome.
“I think there’s a lot of people who are counting us out, a lot of people saying “In a couple years,” but we want to make sure we make our statement now,” Rogers said. “Why not us?”
No. 2 MOUNT SPOKANE 48, No. 10 MONROE 39
When Mount Spokane’s 6-8 forward Jaden Ghoreishi wasn’t attacking the rim, he was drawing double-teams, soaring for rebounds and knocking down triples from downtown.
The game’s best player was unguardable from start to finish: Ghoreishi finished with game-highs in points (24) and rebounds (18), a stat-stuffing double-double in Wednesday’s 3A Round of 12 at the Tacoma Dome.
“It’s state,” Ghoreishi said. “We can’t go home. I really wanted to have my team go on, and I just had to do everything I could.”
Mount Spokane’s defense smothered Monroe early on; the Bearcats shot just 25 percent from the field in the first half as Ghoreishi dominated.
“Everyone was just hustling,” he said. “We had guys diving on the floor, and that’s just the winning plays. Really good box-outs.”
Mount Spokane guard Nalu Vargas added nine points and three rebounds.
Monroe’s Caleb Campbell paced the Bearcats with 11 points.
No. 2 Mount Spokane meets No. 8 Bellarmine Prep in Thursday’s 3A quarterfinals in Tacoma.
No. 4 Bellevue 52, No. 13 Liberty 44
Bellevue came out slow against Liberty, partly because star shooting guard Nicolas Norrah continued to nurse a back injury. But even with a limited Norrah, Bellevue woke up after the first quarter and played complete basketball, outscoring Liberty 45 to 28 over the final three quarters of the game in a 52-44 win.
“We just all trust in each other,” said point guard Bryce Smith, who scored nine points, had 14 rebounds and an assist in the win. “All our bench guys have had plenty of reps with our starters. We just all trust in each other throughout the game.”
Liberty jumped out to a 16-7 lead after one quarter, but it was all Bellevue the rest of the way. The Wolverines allowed just seven points in the fourth quarter.
Forward Tayten Jones led Bellevue with a team-high 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting from the field. Liberty guard Jackson Whitaker scored a game-high 24 points in the loss. Liberty committed 19 turnovers.
Up next: a date with No. 3 Garfield at 7:15 p.m. on Thursday in the 3A quarterfinal round. The upset-minded Wolverines will likely need a healthier version of Norrah against the Bulldogs.
“They’re a really good team,” Smith said of Garfield. “They have a couple of good players. We just have to play our brand of basketball and I think we can shock the world.”
No. 1 RAINIER BEACH 82, No. 9 EASTSIDE CATHOLIC 45
The tournament’s top seed rolls on.
Vikings wing Kaden Powers scored a game-high 22 points, guard Jaylen Petty had 19, and No. 1 Rainier Beach ran over Eastside Catholic, 82-45, in a rematch of last year’s 3A championship game.
After missing most of Rainier Beach’s surprising loss to No. 8 Bellarmine Prep in the regional round to injury, Petty sparked an early barrage and finished with three treys — pushing the lead to as much as 40 points.
“Honestly, (it feels) good,” Petty said, who logged 24 minutes. “Just had to take a break. Me coming back and being a leader, being vocal… I’m just going to bring so much heart and energy to the game. All of my teammates. We’ve all got that heart.”
Powers was an efficient 9-of-15 from the field (22 PTS) with eight rebounds and five assists. Petty added three rebounds and four assists.
Rainier Beach wing Marques Ili-Meneese posted a 12-point, 10-rebound double-double with three assists.
The Vikings meet No. 7 Seattle Prep in Thursday’s 3A quarterfinals at 9 p.m.
This story was originally published March 5, 2025 at 12:22 PM with the headline "Recaps, highlights from the opening round of 4A and 3A state boys basketball tournaments."
