SEQUIM — Sequim’s boys and girls basketball teams got the best of their Port Townsend counterparts in an Olympic League doubleheader at Rick Kaps Gymnasium.
The Sequim girls used the 3-point shot to edge the Redskins 49-46 in the opener, while the boys team ran away from Redskins in a 62-38 thumping.
Wolves senior post Alexas Besand stepped out beyond the 3-point line three times in the early going, rolling up 13 of her game-high 20 points in the first quarter to give Sequim an early 15-14 lead.
Besand added one more 3 on the night.
As a team, Sequim finished with eight 3-pointers — 24 of their 49 points came from beyond the arc.
“[Depending on the 3-pointer] wasn’t necessarily in the game plan, but we took what their defense was giving us, and Alexas had the hot hand early,” Sequim coach Evan Still said after Friday’s game.
When Port Townsend switched into a 3-2 and later 1-2-2 zone defense to try and limit the outside shot, Still went to the basics of basketball, telling his Wolves to “stay patient and move the ball around against the zone to find the open man.”
“We have a good number of girls on the team that can hit from outside, and they showed that,” Still added.
“It feels really nice to start the season with a win.”
Port Townsend’s Jayde Richardson scored 12 of her team-high 15 points in the first half, giving the Redskins what would be their biggest lead of the night, 26-20, with 1:09 left in the second quarter.
Besand splashed a triple for Sequim just before halftime to cut the Port Townsend lead to 26-23 at the half.
The game stayed tight throughout the third quarter.
Sophomore Jordan Miller hit a pair of 3-pointers for Sequim, including a trey from the left wing with five seconds left in the period that cut Port Townsend’s lead to 34-33 entering the fourth quarter.
Sequim’s Melanie Guan tied the score at 36-all with a 3-pointer with 7:20 to play in the game. Guan added five free throws in the fourth, scoring eight of her 10 points in the final frame.
Port Townsend struggled to score in the fourth quarter with Sequim pressuring the Redskins into multiple turnovers and missed shots in the paint. The Redskins suffered scoring droughts of 2:25 and 2:36 in the eight-minute period.
“Going into the fourth quarter I thought they looked more tired than we were,” Port Townsend coach Randy Maag said.
“Our conditioning is pretty good and I thought it would work in our favor late in the game.”
Instead, Sequim kept up the defensive pressure they had employed all game, using its height advantage to restrict the Redskins’ second-chance opportunities.
The Wolves also used their quick hands swiped away possessions from Port Townsend.
Besand had three steals for Sequim down the stretch, including a nifty nab in the backcourt after a missed Sequim free throw with 2:18 to play.
She then scored off a McKenzie Bentz pass on a quick inbounds play to give Sequim a 45-38 lead.
Guan knocked down four free throws in the final 1:14, including two with 9.3 seconds remaining to give Sequim a 49-43 advantage.
Rilke Rutenbeck knocked down a 3-pointer with four seconds left for Port Townsend to account for the final margin.
Sequim (1-0 Olympic League, 1-0 overall) faced Eastside Catholic on Saturday while Port Townsend (0-1, 1-1) travels to Kingston Wednesday.
Boys Basketball
Sequim 62, Port Townsend 38
SEQUIM — The Wolves’ height advantage and willingness to share the basketball led to easy baskets and a smooth 62-38 victory over the Redskins.
“The ball was shared so well tonight,” a smiling Glasser said after Friday’s game.
“I was real pleased with how well the team played together. I’m not sure the assist-to-basket ratio, but I would bet it was high.”
Point guard Anthony Pinza led Sequim with five assists to go along with 10 points, and Alex Barry, Vance Willis and George Johnson spreading the ball around for four dimes apiece.
Pinza’s 3-ball with five seconds left in the first quarter gave Sequim a 13-12 lead, and the Wolves never relinquished their advantage.
“It’s a different team this year [than last year’s Sequim squad which finished sixth in Class 2A], but Alex, Rory and Anthony all contributed last year and got some good experience,” Glasser said.
The obvious strength of this year’s Sequim boys basketball team lies in their height, with four players 6-foot-4 or taller seeing extended minutes on Friday
The Wolves were led by the 18 points of 6-4 senior Rory Kallappa.
Kallappa regularly drove to the rim for layups and short jump shots and relied on his quickness in the post for more inside buckets.
“He can create some big matchup problems due to his size and speed and his ability to finish so quickly around the rim,” Glasser said.
In the waning seconds of the second quarter, Kallappa knocked down the only 3-pointer he attempted to put Sequim up 31-24 heading into halftime.
Barry, a 6-4 guard, had 10 points, 6-6 post Erik Christensen scored eight including a buzzer-beater that give Sequim a 42-30 lead entering the fourth quarter.
Willis, a 6-1 guard, added eight for the Wolves.
Port Townsend’s Cody Russell, who was hot early from outside, was hampered by foul trouble in the first half, but still led the Redskins with four 3-point buckets and 14 total points.
Paul Spaltenstein added 10 for Port Townsend and Sean Dwyer scored eight points.
Sequim (1-0, 1-0) hosts Olympic (0-1, 0-3) on Wednesday night, while the Redskins (0-1, 0-1) host Kingston that same night.