PORT TOWNSEND – Same old story.
The Neah Bay boys basketball team fell far behind in the first quarter, spent the next two quarters getting back in the game and then overtook their opponent in the fourth quarter.
It happened Monday against Port Townsend, and then again Tuesday against Nooksack Valley. Something similar happened against Forks earlier this month.
Even the scores are so similar that it’s difficult to keep track of which was which.
The Red Devils defeated Port Townsend 53-46 during the first day of the Crush in the Slush tournament at Port Townsend High School, and then they beat Nooksack Valley 56-49 on the second day.
“Yeah, same thing. You know we just have a hard time getting going at the start,” Neah Bay coach Stan Claplanhoo said after Tuesday’s win.
“Just the fight in them, you know? They warm up. They must just get loose in the second half or something.”
Claplanhoo remains a bit perplexed by the Red Devils’ slow starts.
Ryan Moss, who led Neah Bay with 25 points Tuesday, said a focus on team play is part of the rallies.
“I think it’s usually because we try to feel it out first, and see if anyone will take over the game, either me, Rweha [Munyagi Jr.] or Kenrick [Doherty Jr.] usually try to,” Moss said.
“And if that doesn’t work out, we usually get back to our offense.”
The Red Devils trailed 16-4 after one quarter Tuesday and then opened the second with a 7-0 run. They got within four points, 21-17, before Nooksack Valley scored six consecutive points to close out the half and take a 27-17 lead into break.
The Pioneers scored the first seven points of the second half to lead 34-17 and completely undo Neah Bay’s rally.
The Red Devils still had 14 minutes left, though.
“We’re just used to it,” Moss said of falling behind.
“Over the years, we’ve been in a lot of situations like this, and we just keep it calm, we do what we usually do: play defense and get easy buckets.”
But the Red Devils would lead before the fourth quarter even started thanks to a 19-1 scoring run over the final six minutes of the third.
As happened Monday against Port Townsend, Neah Bay’s full-court pressure confounded Nooksack Valley.
But unlike Monday, the Red Devils made some outside shots.
Moss made a 3-pointer during the rally, and Doherty, who finished with 10 points, made two, including one that gave Neah Bay a 36-35 lead with 50 seconds remaining.
The Red Devils would hold that lead for the rest of the game. In fact, it only grew more as the press continued to clamp down and the shots continued to go down in the fourth.
“Ryan and Kenrick, they heated up when they needed to,” Claplanhoo said.
“And again, obviously, the press is pretty good right now. Even these better schools we’re playing are having a tough time with it. So we’re pretty happy with the effort they put into our press.”
Rally past Redhawks
Nooksack Valley wasn’t the first to be deceived by an early double-digit lead over Neah Bay.
The Red Devils overcame an awful first quarter and a cold-shooting first half to defeat the Port Townsend 53-46 Monday.
“It’s like we’re comfortable being down, I guess,” Neah Bay guard Kenrick Doherty Jr. said following Monday’s victory.
The Red Devils rallied back from a 17-4 deficit after one quarter to outscore the Redhawks 49-29 over the final three quarters.
“We came out on fire . . . and played really well. That’s probably the best quarter we’ve played all year,” Port Townsend coach Tom Webster said.
To get back into the game, the Red Devils amped up what was working, their press, and stopped relying on 3-pointers, which weren’t falling.
Neah Bay made only seven field goals in the first half, including 2 for 13 from 3-point range
“We weren’t shooting the ball too well,” Claplanhoo said.
“We started going to the post, you know, we got a couple of their guys in foul trouble, so definitely we’re going to attack them down low, make them play ‘D’ on us.
“And running our offense, everybody getting better looks. We still need to work a little bit on patience, just go through the offense a little more, get an easier shot.”
The Red Devils’ full-court pressure forced Port Townsend into just enough empty possessions to keep the score close in the third quarter, and then they pulled away in the fourth.
“You could tell . . . our press messed them up big-time. They couldn’t do anything against the press,” Doherty said.
The Redhawks have played Neah Bay in each of the past three seasons, so they were expecting the press. And Webster said they were in the right spots, but when they were a little bit too loose when the basketball, the Red Devils knocked it away.
“We didn’t handle their press as well as we need to. We gave up some extra possessions that way,” Webster said.
“The thing about Neah Bay is, if you put the ball out there, they will steal it. They’re always looking to steal the basketball.”
Jacob Ralls led Port Townsend with 14 points, which included three 3-pointers, while Detrius Kelsall had 11.
Doherty, Ryan Moss and Jericho McGimpsey had 12 points apiece for the Red Devils, and Reggie Buttram finished with 10 points.
“Total team win, that’s what it was,” Doherty said.
Neah Bay 56, Nooksack Valley 49
Nooksack Valley 16 8 11 14— 49
Neah Bay 4 13 19 20— 56
Individual scoring
Nooksack Valley (49)
Beard 17, Rawls 16, Flores 9, Bauman 4, Toner 3, Weidkamp, Veldman.
Neah Bay (56)
Moss 25, Doherty 10, McGimpsey 9, Munyagi 8, Buttram 2, Bitegeko 2, Dulik.
Neah Bay 53,
Port Townsend 46
Neah Bay 4 14 14 21— 53
Port Townsend 17 7 11 11— 46
Individual scoring
Neah Bay (53)
Moss 12, Doherty 12, McGimpsey 12, Buttram 10, Munyagi 3, Dulik 2, Bitegeko 2, Moore.
Port Townsend (46)
Ralls 14, Kelsall 11, Dances 8, Boucher 5, Charlton 4, Parcher 2, Sua 2.
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Sports Editor Lee Horton can be reached at 360-417-3525 or at lhorton@peninsuladailynews.com.
