PORTLAND – Without question, any scouting report of Tualatin's boys basketball team starts with the explosive backcourt of senior Jemai Lake and junior Pat Vialva Jr., who each average 20 points per game.
But the fourth-seeded Timberwolves showed that they have much more in their arsenal Friday in rolling past No. 17 Benson 72-47 in the semifinals of the OSAA/OnPoint Community Credit Union 6A tournament at the Chiles Center.
Yes, Lake and Vialva contributed 17 and 10 points, respectively, but it was the energy and heady play of 6-foot-6 junior wing Damian Olvera and 5-11 junior guard Carter Lemon that made the difference for Tualatin.
Olvera shot 7 of 9 and finished with 18 points, 12 rebounds, two blocks and two steals, and Lemon shot 6 of 8 and added 14 points, three rebounds and three steals.
“We want to make sure that people know that it's not like they're going to run a triangle-and-two on us, and our game is shut down,” Tualatin coach Bubba Lemon said. “We have a lot of guys that can do a lot of great things. We're just now hitting our full potential. We're peaking at the right time.”
The Timberwolves (23-5) are hitting on all cylinders as they head into their first final since winning back-to-back titles in 2022 and 2023. They will meet No. 2 Central Catholic (24-5) in the championship game at 5 p.m. Saturday.
The only holdover from the 2023 title team, who was a freshman that season. He has blossomed into the team's leader.
“It's a whole new team, and we're hungry,” Carter Lemon said. “We want it bad. We've been talking about it forever, since the start. This is the goal, and now that we're here, I'm excited for tomorrow. Jemai is a great leader, and he's going to lead us. I feel confident in tomorrow.”
Bubba Lemon said that Lake is the only Timberwolf who has “had that taste, and he's been hungry ever since. Everybody else, they haven't had it. They know this is the best chance they might ever have.”
Benson (22-7), which stunned top-seeded Southridge in overtime in the round of 16 and defeated No. 8 Clackamas in the quarterfinals, took a 12-game winning streak into the game. And the young Astros came out swinging, taking a 13-6 lead.
But Olvera gave Tualatin a huge spark, turning three offensive rebounds into baskets during a 10-2 run that put the Timberwolves ahead 25-23 in the second quarter. Olvera hit a three-pointer in the final minute of the first half to give his team a 36-29 halftime edge.
“I came in really confident,” Olvera said. “I knew I had to have a game because a lot of the focus is put on the guards.
“Before the game we were told, 'Take your opportunities and take advantage of them.' … I feel like that's what I did today.”
Olvera carried that mentality into the third quarter. When he cut down the lane and threw down a thunderous dunk, Tualatin went up 44-32, and the Astros were reeling.
“He was phenomenal,” Bubba Lemon said of Olvera. “He was so locked in from yesterday's practice. I am so happy for that guy.”
Bubba Lemon also praised the play of Carter Lemon, his nephew.
“He's just impressing me,” Bubba said. “He's having the best tournament he can have. It's just so awesome to watch him. He's so tenacious on defense, and he lets that carry over. The other day he hit a couple threes, and today he just kept getting to the rim with his speed.”
After falling behind early, the Timberwolves gradually imposed their will on the Astros.
“We got punched in the mouth,” Carter Lemon said. “We had to take it personally. We know our goals, and we wanted to get back up.
“We just had to respond with our brand of basketball. They were controlling the game. Once we got control of the game, we played our game. I felt like the game was over at halftime, just the momentum.”
Tualatin led 56-38 after three quarters and coasted to the victory. The Timberwolves carry a 14-game winning streak into the final against Central Catholic, which beat them 59-53 in the Les Schwab Invitational in late December.
Freshman guard Kendall Hopkins-McGlothen led Benson with 16 points, four rebounds and four assists. Junior wing Daylen McKelvey added 10 points and four rebounds for the Astros, who were playing in their first semifinal since the 2012 5A tournament.
Benson junior point guard Richad Hudson battled foul trouble and finished with two points on 1-for-4 shooting. The offense struggled without Hudson, who fouled out in 17 minutes.
“It affected us a lot,” Hopkins-McGlothen said. “He's a big part of our team. With him out as a ball handler, and him not making decisions for us, putting us in the right positions, it was pretty tough out there.”
The loss ended a remarkable run for Benson. The Astros, who start one freshman, two sophomores, one junior and one senior, are set up for future success.
“We've learned a lot of how to fight through adversity,” said Hopkins-McGlothen, the team's scoring leader with a 19-point average.
No. 2 Central Catholic 65, No. 6 Jesuit 59: Senior guard Zamir Paschal scored 19 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter as the Rams (26-2) came back from an 11-point deficit to defeat the Crusaders (21-8).
Jesuit led from the opening tip, extending its advantage to 46-35 on a jumper by senior guard Joe Stimpson with 6:56 left in the game. But Paschal, who had four points through three quarters, took over down the stretch.
“I'm able to flip it on,” said Paschal, who played on Central Catholic's 2024 title team. “It means a lot. Last ride, so I want to get this 'dub' for the community, for my teammates, for my coaches.”
Trailing 51-42, Paschal scored five points to kick-start a 10-0 run. The Rams took the lead at 52-51 on a jumper by junior Isaac Bongen with 3:59 left.
Paschal answered two Jesuit baskets with a three-point play and a drive to put Central Catholic up 57-56 with 2:10 to go. He scored on a jumper and another drive to make it 61-56 with 28 seconds remaining.
Junior Malcolm Weatherspoon and Paschal each made two free throws to ice the win.
Paschal finished 8 of 15 from the field, hitting two three-pointers, and added five rebounds and two steals. Weatherspoon and senior Robbie Long III had 12 points each.
Stimpson led Jesuit with 17 points, six rebounds and three assists. Junior Major Williams had 12 points, six rebounds and two steals and senior Ryan Barone added 10 points for the Crusaders.
Jesuit, last year's runner-up, had the Rams on the ropes.
“We knew they were going to be like that,” Paschal said. “They're a good team, a good coached team. All season, they've been shocking everybody. Everybody knows Jesuit does well in playoffs, so we were expecting it. We just stayed with it.”
jerryu@osaa.org
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