By Kiara Doyal, The Seattle Medium
Last night, the O’Dea Fighting Irish squared off against the Lincoln Abes of Tacoma in a regional playoff matchup in the Boys 3A State Basketball Tournament at Bellevue College. With a first-round bye in next week’s state tournament at the Tacoma Dome on the line, the Seattle versus Tacoma showdown carried major stakes, and both teams came out ready to compete from the opening tip.
O’Dea won the tip, but Lincoln struck first when Jalan Lillie knocked down a three-point shot. The Fighting Irish answered quickly as Brian Webster scored off the glass and split a pair of free throws to keep the game even early. Lincoln’s Justus Holt followed his own miss for a putback and added a free throw, setting the tone for a physical first quarter.
The pace stayed quick as the teams traded baskets and leads. O’Dea grabbed momentum midway through the quarter when Josiah Bowman threw down a dunk off an assist from Webster. Peyton Brooks and Webster followed with baskets to give the Fighting Irish a 9–6 edge. Lincoln stayed aggressive, however, battling back as the score seesawed from 10–10 to 12–10 and 12–11.
In the final minute of the quarter, Lincoln closed strong. Noah Dennis and Holt combined for key buckets to cap a late surge, that gave the Abes an 18–12 heading in to the second quarter.
Lincoln carried their momentum into the second period. After Brooks missed two free throws, Dennis converted a putback to extend Lincoln’s lead to 20–12. O’Dea struggled at the line again when Bowman missed a pair of free throws, and Lincoln capitalized. Davion Shareef-Dulanaey finished strong inside to make it 22–12, stretching the margin to double digits.
Brooks gave O’Dea a spark with a tough three-point play, but Lincoln responded immediately as Shareef-Dulanaey converted a three-point play of his own, and Holt followed with another three-point play to stretch Lincon’s lead to 28–15. A shot clock violation stalled O’Dea’s rhythm, and the Abes continued to pour it on.
Shareef-Dulanaey buried a three-point shot, Holt grabbed a steal and soared in for a dunk, and another three-point play from Shareef-Dulanaey capped a dominant 7–0 Lincoln run that extended the lead to 35–17. O’Dea briefly stopped the bleeding with free throws from Ray Clark III and a jumper from Nino Moksivong, but Lincoln continued to control the game. Holt added another tough finish late, and after O’Dea’s Giulio Banchero picked up his third foul, Lillie converted a free throw to send the Abes into halftime with a commanding 39–21 lead.
O’Dea came out of the locker room determined to chip away at the deficit. Bowman knocked down two free throws to open the third quarter, cutting the margin to 39–23. Lincoln quickly answered with a basket from Kasey Williams, but the Fighting Irish found a brief rhythm.
Gene Woodard III, Brooks, and Webster combined for a 4–0 push that trimmed the score to 41–27. Just as O’Dea appeared to be building momentum, Shareef-Dulanaey drained a three-point shot to push the lead back to 44–27 before a timeout with 5:39 remaining in the quarter.
Out of the timeout, Webster attacked the rim for back-to-back layups, cutting the deficit to 44–31. Lincoln responded with composure, putting together a 5–0 run that included another three-point play from Holt to make it 49–31. Brooks answered with a chance for a three-point play for O’Dea but missed the free throw, and Lincoln continued to control the paint with another strong finish from Holt.
Momentum shifted again when Webster picked up his fourth foul and headed to the bench with just over three minutes remaining in the quarter. O’Dea managed to score at the line with Zi Leonard and Banchero, but Lincoln closed the quarter emphatically as Shareef-Dulanaey drilled a deep three-point shot, sending the Abes into the fourth quarter leading 56–38.
Lincoln maintained control early in the fourth. Bowman scored inside and drew a foul but missed the free throw before Webster cleaned it up with a putback to make it 56–42. The Abes quickly answered with back-to-back interior baskets from Holt and Dennis, stretching the lead to 62–42 and quieting any O’Dea hopes of a comeback.
JuJu Duckett converted a three-point play to give the Fighting Irish a brief lift, but Williams answered with another bucket following an O’Dea timeout. A technical foul was then assessed to O’Dea head coach Jason Kerr, sending Shareef-Dulanaey to the line where he converted one free throw to extend the lead to 65–45.
Despite baskets from Brooks and Webster, Lincoln never relinquished control of the game. Leading 67–51, the Abes called a timeout with 3:12 remaining. Shortly after, Webster fouled out, dealing another blow to O’Dea’s comeback effort.
The Fighting Irish continued to battle behind late baskets from Levi Orbino, Brooks, and Banchero. Brooks added a free throw to make it 71–56 with 32 seconds left, but the deficit proved too large. Jace Williams missed two free throws for Lincoln in the final moments, and Orbino scored a contested layup before the final buzzer.
When it was over, Lincoln secured a 71–58 victory, advancing to the quarterfinals, while O’Dea will play in a loser-out game on Wednesday at the Tacoma Dome.
Lincoln was led by Shareef-Dulanaey who finished the night with 22 points. For O’Dea, Webster led the Fighting Irish with 17 points.
Photos/Aaron Allen
