PORTLAND – West Linn not only hasn't won a state championship in girls basketball, but it's been four decades since the Lions made their only appearance in the state final in 1985.
That might be about to change.
West Linn did not graduate any players from a 6A quarterfinal team that shared the Three Rivers League title with state champion Tualatin. And the Lions – who improved to 6-0 on Saturday by defeating West Salem 63-39 in the opening round of the POA Holiday Classic Emerald bracket at Grant High School – are aiming high.
“Last year was good, but we want more this year,” said coach Brooke Cates, whose team is No. 2 in the OSAAtoday 6A coaches poll, behind Tualatin. “There's absolutely that expectation, like, 'Let's go get it, we can do this.'”
West Linn was in total control against West Salem (4-5), scoring the game's first seven points and never looking back. Sophomore post Kinley Buse scored 15 points, senior wing Ayla Arnold had 14 points, seven rebounds and three assists and senior point guard Reese Jordan collected 11 points, nine rebounds and six assists in the win.
West Linn advances to the Emerald bracket semifinals to play Sage Hill (Calif.) on Monday at 1:30 p.m. at Franklin High School.
The Lions know they are far from a finished product, but believe they have made meaningful improvement from last season, when they went 22-8 and tied for the second-most wins in school history.
“It's just maturity,” said the Washington State-bound Jordan, the Three Rivers player of the year last season. “Those little mistakes, they're down a little bit. That's what used to cost us games. I think we've really matured in not making those turnovers, and making those smart plays.”
West Linn entered the tournament off a title in the eight-team Capitol City Classic in Salem. The Lions beat 5A No. 1 South Albany 52-42 in the semifinals and 6A No. 4 South Medford 65-53 in the final.
“It gave us a lot of confidence in how we played,” Jordan said. “Some of the games weren't really how we wanted to play, but we ended up getting the win, just playing really hard at the end.”
West Linn has the luxury of having two outstanding playmakers in Jordan and junior guard Kaylor Buse, a Three Rivers first-team selection last season. The 5-foot-9 Jordan is averaging 15.3 points, 9.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists. The 5-8 Buse is putting up 14.2 points, 4.8 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 2.7 steals.
“It's hard to guard, for sure,” Kaylor Buse said. “Also, we have teammates who do such a good job of putting us in position to make plays. That makes us another five times harder to guard.”
The chemistry between Jordan and Kaylor Buse helps drive the Lions.
“I think we just get each other, on the court and off the court,” said Kaylor Buse, who had a season-high 11 assists in the win over South Medford. “A lot of my ideas, I usually go to Reese. We're always each other's sounding board. That really helps on the court. I aleady know what she's thinking, what she wants.”
Jordan, Kaylor Buse, Arnold and senior wing Sophie Maxwell are returning starters. The fifth starter from last season, sophomore guard Brie Balensifer, is out indefinitely after suffering a broken leg in the fall. Kinley Buse has moved into the starting lineup and is averaging 10.5 points and 5.7 rebounds.
In Saturday's win, West Linn held West Salem to 29.5 percent shooting (13 for 44) and owned a 45-24 edge in rebounds. The Lions struggled at times to find their rhythm on offense, but came through with another solid all-around defensive performance.
“We're still kind of working on the flow of our offense,” Jordan said. “Defense is what's getting us games right now. Extra communication, switching up what we're doing.”
West Salem got 13 points and five rebounds from senior forward Emma Zuniga.
Other opening-round games in the top brackets Saturday in the POA Holiday Classic:
Emerald bracket
Sage Hill advanced with a 77-59 win over Camas (Wash.), outscoring the Papermakers 25-9 in the fourth quarter. Amalia Holguin (25 points, four assists) and Kamdyn Klamberg (18 points, six rebounds) led Sage Hill. Junior point guard Lauren Hood had 39 points for Camas, hitting four three-pointers. … Alexia Braden scored 17 points to lead Beaverton past Lincoln 54-40. Ruby Foord added 13 points and 10 rebounds for the Beavers, who led 20-16 at half. Siri Lindsey had 12 points and eight rebounds for Lincoln. … Beaverton will face St. Mary's (Calif.) in a Monday night semifinal at Grant. St. Mary's dispatched Sumner (Wash.) 60-49 as Mia Jamais scored 15 points, making 5 of 10 from three-point range.
Diamond bracket
No. 3 Benson improved to 4-0 by beating Annie Wright (Wash.) 69-38. Jayla Lackey (14 points, 14 rebounds) and Samarah Massey (14 points, nine rebounds, six assists) showed the way for the Astros, who pulled away after leading 29-21 at half. Jasmine Andrisek paced Annie Wright with 14 points. … Benson will play California powerhouse Etiwanda in a Monday night semifinal at Franklin. Etiwanda blasted Lake Washington (Wash.) 68-44, getting 18 points from Chasity Rice. … No. 1 Tualatin got 15 points and 15 rebounds from sophomore Kendall Dawkins in routing Union of Vancouver 59-41. Sophomore point guard Love Lei Best added 14 points and four assists for the Timberwolves (5-0), who advance to meet Mater Dei (Calif.) in a Monday night semifinal at Franklin. … Mater Dei moved on by dropping Eastside Catholic (Wash.) 63-38. Harmony Golightly hit 6 of 10 shots from three-point range and scored a team-high 19 points for Mater Dei. Raquel Dunnam led Eastside Catholic with 14 points.
Platinum bracket
No. 6 Southridge knocked down 14 three-pointers in handling Lincoln (Wash.) 73-42. Sara Mangan (25 points, five three-pointers), Bailey Griffin (24 points, six three-pointers) and Katrina Janowski (13 points, three three-pointers) did the damage from deep. Oliviyah Edwards scored 25 points for Lincoln. The Skyhawks will play in the semifinals Monday at Franklin against Faith Family (Texas), which beat Salesian (Wash.) 47-34 behind 17 points from Brooklyn Smith. … No. 4 South Medford defeated Century 64-44, led by Jordan Barlow (17 points, six assists), Dyllyn Howell (15 points, four assists, six steals) and Mayen Akpan (15 points, 12 rebounds). Century got 19 points and four blocks from Kiara Green. The Panthers will meet AC Davis (Wash.) in the semifinals Monday at Franklin. AC Davis stopped Mission Hills (Calif.) 75-63 as Cheyenne Hull went off for 32 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and four steals.
Sapphire bracket
No. 5 Jesuit and Barlow picked up wins and will clash in the semifinals Monday at Grant. Barlow held off Grants Pass 63-50 behind 23 points from Adia Fancher and 18 points from Marlie Williams. Jesuit turned back McMinnville 47-28. … Nelson, ranked No. 8 in 6A, ran away from 5A No. 7 Silverton 55-39 to secure a Monday semifinal date against St. Joseph's (Calif.) at Franklin. St. Joseph's rolled past Jefferson 84-47. Mackenzee Lawrence scored 15 points in defeat for the Democrats.
jerryu@osaa.org
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