PORT ANGELES — Hampered by foul trouble that resulted in a scoreless first half, and hobbled by a painful third-quarter ankle injury, Hunter Hathaway lifted his game just when Port Angeles needed him most.
Hathaway hit two game-sealing free throws with 12 seconds left to lead the Roughriders to a 54-50 win over North Mason in Olympic League boys basketball action Tuesday.
“It hurt after the release but I tried to focus on the shot rather than the ankle,” Hathaway said of the clinching free throws.
“[Adrenaline] definitely helped. It hurts a little more now than it did during the game.”
Hathaway’s heroics looked unlikely early on with the Bulldogs jumping out to an 10-0 lead after Port Angeles (2-6, 5-11) committed five early turnovers and missed its first five shots from the floor.
Riders coach Kasey Ulin felt his team looked tight from tipoff.
“We were channeling the Seahawks a little bit to start the game,” Ulin joked.
“I think we just put too much pressure on ourselves sometimes.
“You could see the first 2 or 3 minutes we were missing open shots and turning the ball over without pressure, and then finally we got a score and everyone took a breath and let our defense try to get our offense going.”
Noah McGoff got that first basket with 2:34 to play in the period when he was fouled on a drive to the rim and hit the shot and his free-throw attempt.
Steals in midcourt and transition layups by Miki Andrus pulled Port Angeles within 11-7 after one quarter.
With Lambros Rogers and Nathan Angevine joining Hathaway with three early fouls, the Riders reserves rallied.
This included three jumpers from Bryan Frith and John Boesenberg drawing an offensive foul before coming down to hit a layup to put Port Angeles on top 21-20 heading to halftime.
The Riders inside-outside game heated up against North Mason’s 2-3 zone defense in the third.
Hathaway scored inside on the first Port Angeles possession after Ulin discussed how important it was to feed the team’s leading scorer.
“We said we have to get him touches,” Ulin said.
“Don’t force it in to him yet, but we have to get the ball in his hands.”
After a passive first half, Hathaway also knew he had to be more aggressive offensively.
“I just needed to flash more,” Hathaway said.
“Make more moves to the ball so they could get me an open pass rather than stand there waiting for one to come.
“That worked better in the second half, for sure.”
Hathaway scored a team-high 13 points for the Riders, all in the second half.
Rogers also got some looks and some points down low, and Angevine cashed in two of his three 3-pointers on the night as Port Angeles built a 36-26 lead with 2:30 left in the third period.
“I thought they did a great job of playing aggressive but under control with the foul trouble in the second half,” Ulin said of Hathaway, Rogers and Angevine.
North Mason wasn’t done yet, as reserve Zac Marks came on strong late in the third.
Marks provided an unlikely spark, shooting and hitting his first jumper with his eyes closed and scoring four more points to cut the Riders’ lead to 38-33 entering the fourth quarter.
Hathaway injured his ankle coming down after a basket with 29.7 seconds left in the third.
“He’s a warrior,” Ulin said.
“He didn’t want to come out.”
With Hathaway sidelined, Bulldogs freshman Trey Fisher lived up to his name, knocking down back-to-back triples to tie the game at 41-all with 6:05 to play.
A Rogers steal and basket, followed by Hathaway coming back in the game to rebound an errant Angevine 3 and hit a big basket while being fouled, put Port Angeles on top for good.
Down just one basket, North Mason kept fouling and sending the Riders to the line, a strategy that nearly became effective because of Port Angeles misses.
The Riders collectively hit 2 of 6 free throws over a 1:02 stretch of the final two minutes to lead 52-50 with 22.6 seconds to go.
After a Rogers miss from the line, Fisher took the ball to the rim for the Bulldogs, only to encounter McGoff sliding in to protect the basket.
Fisher missed his attempt, no foul was called on either team, and North Mason was forced to foul Hathaway after a Port Angeles rebound.
“I thought Noah took a pretty good charge and we got the rebound,” Hathaway said.
“I’d be pretty frustrated with a no-call If I were them, though.”
Hathaway cashed his freebies and despite a bumpy landing, the Riders got the win.
“That’s a huge win and hopefully a confidence-booster,” Ulin said.
“The kids work so hard and bring great attitudes, so hopefully we can build on this win.”
Port Angeles visits North Kitsap (7-1, 12-4) on Tuesday.
Port Angeles 54, North Mason 50
North Mason 11 9 13 17— 50
Port Angeles 7 14 17 16— 54
Individual scoring
North Mason (50)
Geyer 14, Fisher 10, Becker 8, Marks 8, Burgraaf 6, Hohmann 3, Vautour 1.
Port Angeles (54)
Hathaway 13, Rogers 11, Angevine 10, Rogers Frith 6, McGoff 6, Andrus 4, Boesenberg 2, Pederson 2.
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Sports reporter Michael Carman can be contacted at 360-452-2345, ext. 5250 or at mcarman@peninsualdailynews.com.
