Replacing its coach and four starters hasn't slowed down reigning 3A boys basketball champion Westside Christian this season.
The Eagles, No. 2 in the OSAAtoday 3A coaches poll, not only have avoided a letdown, but they have secured the top seed to the state playoffs for the fifth consecutive year.
Westside Christian of Tigard has built around its lone returning starter, 5-foot-7 senior point guard Cole Chiong, and an impact transfer in 6-2 senior guard Cade Hartenstein, who came over from 4A North Marion.
“We saw it in summer league what we had,” said Marc Howell, who was promoted to coach after assisting David Henry for the last four seasons. “With Cole coming back, and adding Cade, we knew we had a good guard combo there. And we knew we had shooting. The key ingredient is we have guys that just have that competitive fire.”
The Eagles (23-4) finished second in the Lewis & Clark League standings, one game behind No. 1 Valley Catholic (23-3), but claimed the league's top seed Saturday with a thrilling 94-83 double-overtime playoff win over the visiting Valiants.
Hartenstein shined with 35 points, eight rebounds and seven assists and Chiong put up 22 points, 12 rebounds, five assists and four steals. Senior Josh Huskey, a 6-3 center, had 18 points and 11 rebounds and junior guard Quinten Jaimet added 12 points, hitting four three-pointers.
“We came in pretty sharp,” said Howell, whose team is 2-1 against Valley Catholic this season. “For the most part, we really executed our game plan.”
Westside Christian led by 10 points with five minutes left in regulation but Valley Catholic rallied behind senior guard Michael Mehta, who scored 14 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter. Mehta forced overtime at 77-77 when he was fouled while shooting a three-pointer with four seconds left and drained all three free throws.
In the first overtime, the Valiants got a buzzer-beating rebound basket from senior guard Elijah Schaal to force the second overtime. Jaimet opened the second overtime with a three-pointer and Hartenstein followed with a layup and a dunk as the Eagles pulled away.
“To keep their heads and not give into the moment, it really showed a lot of poise,” Howell said of his players.
The game was played at a fever pitch in front of a standing-room only crowd at Westside Christian.
“It was as electric an environment as you're going to get for 3A basketball, other than maybe the actual state tournament,” Howell said.
Junior forward Hank Lomber led Valley Catholic with 30 points. But Lomber and junior guard Garrett Frank (13 points) fouled out and did not play in the second overtime.
Hartenstein is averaging 22.3 points, 7.9 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 3.0 steals and Chiong is contributing 13.1 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 2.0 steals. They are joined in the starting lineup by Huskey, Jaimet and sophomore guard Emmett Lee
Hartenstein has been relentless in attacking defenses and Chiong plays with high energy. Chiong's hustle was a key factor in the win over Valley Catholic.
“It was one of the best games I've ever seen him play,” Howell said. “He did not have any quit in him. He played with every bit of what he had. He might be one of the fastest players in Oregon basketball, period, not just 3A.”
Westside Christian lost at No. 8 Oregon Episcopal 59-53 in its final league game Feb. 12, dropping the Eagles below Valley Catholic in the standings. Westside Christian got payback by defeating OES 58-49 in a league playoff game Feb. 17.
The Eagles, state runners-up in 2023 and 2024, are going for their fourth consecutive finals appearance. They could run into Valley Catholic, which is on the other side of the playoff bracket.
“That's a good possibility, but we've both got our work to do,” Howell said. “There are good teams on both sides.”
Summit pins Cowboys with first loss
No. 7 Summit spoiled No. 2 Crook County's perfect record Feb. 17 with an 85-60 home rout over the Cowboys in a key 5A Intermountain Conference game.
The hot-shooting Storm (16-5, 8-1) jumped on Crook County (20-1, 8-1) from the start, avenging a 59-49 road loss in the first round of conference play and forcing a first-place tie in the Intermountain.
“We just came out in attack mode,” Summit coach Joe Wells told the Bend Bulletin. “One of the things with us is we haven’t put together a full four quarters. And to be doing that at this time of the year is super important.”
Senior Caleb Branch, a transfer from Redmond (Wash.), made six three-pointers and scored 30 points to lead Summit. Senior Foster Kettering had 14 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for the Storm, which led 21-12 after one quarter and 39-20 at half.
Summit made 11 three-pointers in the game. It was a contrast from when it made three three-pointers in the first meeting between the teams.
Crook County got 31 points from 6-10 senior forward Bryce Lowenbach and 14 points from senior guard Jace Jonas.
Axe denies South Medford
South Eugene thwarted South Medford's bid to claim the outright title in the 6A Southwest Conference with a 67-57 home win over the Panthers on Friday.
South Medford (18-7, 10-2) could have clinched the title over Sheldon (17-7, 9-2) with a win over the Axe in its regular-season finale. But South Eugene (13-11, 7-4) denied the Panthers.
“It was a must-win for us,” Axe coach George Zaninovich said. “Just proud of how our team played together.”
Junior Elijah Gabriel scored 26 points, including nine in a pivotal third quarter, for South Eugene, which also got 18 points from senior Calvin Yoder. Senior Joey Clevenger and freshman Scottie Miller scored 17 and 14 points, respectively, for South Medford.
South Eugene held South Medford to 30-percent shooting, including 5 of 27 from three-point range.
Sheldon can share the conference title with South Medford with a home win over North Medford (6-17, 4-7) in the regular-season finale for both teams Tuesday.
Notes: Clackamas junior R.J. Barhoum (6-5) had 36 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists as the Cavaliers defeated visiting Sandy 69-74 on Saturday. … Ridgeview junior Gavin Leunen surpassed 1,000 career points with a 32-point outing in a 67-57 win at Redmond on Feb. 13. He also had 12 rebounds and four assists. … Junior guard Curtis Krogh made eight three-pointers and scored 32 points to lead Irrigon to a 59-53 upset win at Enterprise in a 2A Blue Mountain Conference game Feb. 13.
jerryu@osaa.org
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