BLAME IT ON the state’s insanely short 20-game schedule.
High School basketball season just seems to fly by in the Evergreen State.
Here we are in first week of February, and we already have to say goodbye to one-third of the North Olympic Peninsula’s hoops contingent.
Yes, six of the area’s prep basketball teams have already been eliminated from postseason contention, and it’s possible another three could be gone by next Friday.
And I was just getting to know them.
Of course, that still means a majority of the Peninsula’s teams are still in the thick of things.
Here’s my top five state hopefuls from that list:
• Neah Bay girls — The Red Devil (18-0 overall) girls have yet to be challenged, let alone lose a game, this season.
They do it with a group that has no identifiable star but rather a collection of talented players more than willing to share in the spotlight.
Somehow they weren’t even ranked in the last Associated Press state rankings, despite being one of just six girls teams in the entire state that are still undefeated.
The Red Devils have won two straight state trophies under head coach Lisa Halttunen. I think a three-peat is in order.
• Neah Bay boys — The state tournament has become something of a rite of passage for Neah Bay boys basketball players.
Before missing last year’s tournament, the Red Devils had reached state five years in a row. Now that they have the North Olympic League’s top seed to the 1B Tri-District, all they need to do now is win two of their next three games.
Considering the Red Devils have already beaten their first round opponent (Tulalip Heritage) on its own court earlier in the season, I’d say things are looking pretty good.
• Port Angeles girls — It takes a lot of patience to follow these Roughriders (15-2).
After all, it was pretty much a given they would run roughshod over the Olympic League to earn the top seed to 3A sub-district playoffs (Which they have.)
The bigger question was “What’s going to happen when the reach the postseason?”
The sixth-ranked Riders have gone a combined 0-3 in playoff games the last two seasons despite winning at least a share of the Olympic League. They will likely face a seemingly-beatable Capital (12-4) team in the Cougars’ own gym for a top seed to districts.
I can’t wait to see what happens.
• Clallam Bay girls — The Bruins are 12-1 if you don’t count the three times they had to go up against Neah Bay.
And point guard Jessica Angulo, who averages 13.7 points, 8.5 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game, might just be the best player in the NOL.
Throw in senior post Sarah Reeves, and there’s a lot to like about the Bruins’ state chances.
• PT boys, Sequim boys (tie) — I lumped these two together only because they have a couple of things in common.
1) They both appear to be peaking at the right time. 2) They both have an extremely difficult road to navigate to make it to state.
Sequim (9-8) must make it out of a two-teams-to-state district that includes the likes of Kingston (12-5), North Mason (11-6), No. 5 Fife (13-2) and No. 6 Steilacoom (13-2).
Meanwhile, Port Townsend (7-11) will have to win three playoff games in the 1A Tri-District., with University Prep (11-6) likely the big dog standing in the way.
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Matt Schubert is the outdoors and sports columnist for the Peninsula Daily News. His column regularly appears on Thursdays and Fridays. He can be reached at matt.schubert@peninsuladailynews.com.