By Jacoby Sampson
The Seattle Medium
The Garfield Bulldogs needed a late game rally to defeat the Rainier Beach Vikings, 72-66, in a Metro League matchup of cross-town rivals.
Garfield started off hot in the first quarter opening the game with an 8-0 run, but the Vikings fought back and closed the gap to end the quarter trailing the Bulldogs by only two points. John Hart led the way for the Vikings with six points in the quarter, while the Bulldogs had four different players contribute to their 12 points. The game tempo was balanced while Garfield took more of a half court approach and used their size and strength to get easy shots in the paint. The Vikings, on the other hand, were able to get in to open court and use their speed to get layups and open shots on their fast break opportunities as they trailed the Bulldogs 12-10 at the end of the quarter.
In the second quarter, the two teams went back and forth as the Vikings continued to find success making plays in the open court, and the Bulldogs continued to try to impose their will on the Vikings as they kept pounding the ball inside and using their size to their advantage. Hart, who led Rainier Beach with 13 first half points, ended the half with a step back three-point shot at the buzzer to give the Vikings a 28-26 halftime lead. Garfield freshman Jaylin Stewart helped set the tone on defense as he recorded three blocked shots in the half that led to transition baskets for the Bulldogs, as the Bulldogs dominated the boards and controlled the paint.
Rainier Beach controlled the third quarter as they utilized a small line-up to ignite their up and down tempo while hitting multiple three-point shots as they began to put some distance between themselves and the Bulldogs, as Garfield, for the first time in the game, had no answer for Rainier Beach and struggled to contain the run by the Vikings. The Vikings outscored Garfield 22-14 in the quarter and headed to the fourth quarter with what appeared to be a commanding 10-point lead.
However, the fourth quarter belonged to the Bulldogs. After trailing by 12 points early in the quarter, Garfield utilized a full court press to totally disrupt the Vikings offense making it difficult for them to get the ball up the court against the Bulldogs pressure. Garfield quickly climbed back into the game as a combination of turnovers and foul trouble by the Vikings helped swing the momentum back in their favor and got the Garfield faithful back into the game. The Bulldogs outscored Rainier Beach 32-16 in the quarter and walked away with a hard-fought victory over the Vikings.
Garfield’s Tari Eason scored 23 points, while teammates Kendall Munson had 20 point and Jaylin Stewart chipped in 15 points to lead the Bulldogs. The Vikings were led by the 27 points of John Hart.
Pictorial Highlight of Garfield vs Rainier Beach
Photos by John Saunders
