Top-seeded Lynden falls in regional-round opener
It wasn’t the start the top-seeded Lynden boys wanted to open the Class 2A regional round of the state basketball tournament.
After a 14-10 first quarter, Lynden’s offense stalled while Olympic’s kept on chugging. The Trojans pulled away with a 25-17 fourth quarter to secure a 56-47 win.
“They were more physical, more aggressive tonight, and I thought that was the difference in the game,” Lynden coach Brian Roper said. “They got up into us and pressured and we looked skinnier and younger.”
Tyler Yost had 14 points to lead Olympic. The Trojans had balanced scoring, with five players getting at least seven points.
Offensively, Olympic ran the shot clock down before making its move to great effect. Before its 25-point explosion in the fourth quarter, the Trojans took only 12 shots.
JR Nelson directed traffic for Olympic, guiding his teammates to the right spots on the court. He had six of the Trojans 17 first-half points and finished with eight points.
After securing 17 rebounds in Lynden’s winner-to-state win against Bellingham last week, senior guard Andrew Kivlighn made it his priority to score. Kivlighn had eight of Lynden’s 14 points in the first quarter. He scored from the post, from midrange and from beyond the arc. He finished with a team-high 21 points.
The Lions’ Christian Zamora started the second quarter with a steal and breakaway layup, but he was called for his third foul and sat until seven seconds remained in the half. Kivlighn provided the rest of Lynden’s second-quarter scoring with two baskets Olympic had only three baskets and a free throw in the second quarter and trailed 20-17 at halftime.
The Trojans took their first lead with 6:24 left in the third quarter, and after Lynden scored three straight points, Olympic went on a 9-0 run to end the third quarter.
“We wanted to spread them out and move and attack, and at times we got a little bit stagnant,” Roper said. “Give credit to Olympic though. Their man-to-man defense controlled the tempo.”
Zamora tried to help the Lions claw back in the fourth quarter with back-to-back 3-pointers, but it was too late, and the Trojans made their free throws down the stretch. He finished with 15 points.
In a defensive battle, both teams were held below their 62.4-point scoring averages. The Lions were allowing 50.4 points a game.
Lynden will face Lindbergh in an elimination game at 2 p.m. Wednesday at the Yakima Valley SunDome.
This story was originally published February 27, 2017 at 7:37 AM with the headline "Top-seeded Lynden falls in regional-round opener."