All Games at Tacoma Dome Boys:
No.4 Shadle Park (20-5) vs. No.1 Franklin (24-1) 9am
Players to Watch: Peyton Siva (Franklin), Chris Holmes (Franklin), Anthony Brown (Shadle Park)
No.7 Seattle Prep (19-8) vs. No.10 Lakes (15-8) 10:30am
Players to Watch: Jon Humphrie (Seattle Prep), Patrick Nyeko (Seattle Prep), Andre Winston Jr. (Lakes)
North Kitsap (19-6) vs. No. 8 Meadowdale (20-4) 12pm
Players to Watch: Roger O'Neill (Meadowdale), Connor Hamlett (Meadowdale), Taylor Hoffer (North Kitsap)
O'Dea (19-8) vs. No.3 Enumclaw (22-2) 2pm
Players to Watch: Devante Williams (O'Dea), Sean Jones (O'Dea), Dominic Ballard (O'Dea), Riley Carel (Enumclaw), Jayson Lewis (Enumclaw)
Foster (16-7) vs. No.2 Bellevue (23-2) 3:30pm
Players to Watch: Refugio Soto-Lopez (Foster), Travis Miller (Foster), Colton Christian (Bellevue), Aaron Bright (Bellevue), Alex Schrempf (Bellevue)
Lynnwood (14-12) vs. No.9 Union (18-6) 5pm
Players to Watch: Aarron Matzon (Lynnwood), Simi Fajemisin (Lynnwood), Caden Skleton (Union)
Columbia River (18-7) vs. Rogers (12-14) 7pm
Players to Watch: Zach Nelson (Rogers), Pat McCabe (Rogers), Jesse Vaughn (Rogers), Steven Bjornstad (Columbia River)
Rainier Beach (17-9) vs. Capital (20-6) 8:30pm
Players to Watch: Jaamon Echols (Rainier Beach), Corey Stern (Rainier Beach), Najee Ali (Rainier Beach), Colin Bossio (Capital)
Preview: The infamous "McMuffin Game" seems like a really scary game for Franklin. Not only is this game at 9am in the morning, but it's against a really strong team that Franklin has never seen. Also Anthony Brown, a WSU-bound Senior, is one of the best players in the state. If Shadle Park can take care of the basketball and hit some 3-pointers they could possibly pull of the upset. Call me crazy.
Seattle Prep versus Lakes is a rematch of last year's state semi-final, in which Lakes won 52-49. Both teams lost a considerable amount of Seniors from last season, but they were both able to have solid regular seasons to put themselves in the post season.
Watch out for Taylor Hoffer from North Kitsap, he's one of those players that people in Seattle have never seen yet, it will be interesting to see if Meadowdale will be able to contain him.
O'Dea seems to be peaking at the right time, Devante Williams, a sophomore has suddenly emerged as a 3rd option with the already good Sean Jones and Dominic Ballard. Will Enumclaw be able to handle a battle-tested and experienced O'Dea squad?
Bellevue gets an easy matchup against Foster, this should be a blowout . Union is a pretty solid team from what I've heard, Lynnwood doesn't stand much of a chance.
Nevada-recruit Steven Bjornstad will try to lead Columbia River deep in the tournament. C. River first plays Rogers from Spokane, who has a losing record. This should be another blowout.
Finnally, Rainier Beach will face off against Capital in the night cap. Depending on the injury status of Jaamon Echols will determine the outcome of this 1st round match up. However, Rainier Beach is way too talented to get knocked out this early.
Useful Links:
Tournament Bracket
Team Rankings
Player Rankings
Note: We have several player interviews lined up, so keep coming back for tournament updates/analysis/interviews...
Original Story:
http://www.seatownsports.net/2009/03/...
