By Kiara Doyal, The Seattle Medium
With their season on the line under the bright lights of the Tacoma Dome, O’Dea leaned on the scoring of Brian Webster and Gene Woodard III’s defense to stay alive in the boys 3A state basketball tournament.
Webster scored 29 points, and Woodard anchored a relentless defensive effort as the Fighting Irish defeated the Shorewood Stormrays 62-52 in a loser-out matchup, advancing to the quarterfinals.
From the opening tip, O’Dea played with urgency. Webster got the Fighting Irish on the board first with a driving layup that quickly energized both his teammates and the crowd.
Defensively, Woodard dominated the paint in the opening quarter, recording four blocks and repeatedly forcing Shorewood to rethink its drives to the rim.
Still, the Stormrays kept the game competitive early. The teams traded baskets throughout the quarter as Webster scored nine first-quarter points to lead the Fighting Irish. Shorewood countered by attacking the rim and getting to the free-throw line, converting four of six attempts to stay within reach.
Midway through the quarter, O’Dea held a narrow 12-9 lead when Shorewood called a timeout with 3:27 remaining. However, the break did little to slow the Fighting Irish. O’Dea’s defensive pressure intensified, forcing multiple turnovers and disrupting Shorewood’s offensive rhythm.
During a brief scoring drought, O’Dea’s Nino Moksivong sparked the crowd by stripping the ball and racing down the floor for a transition opportunity. Shorewood’s Tyler Marlow recovered in time to block the attempt at the rim, but O’Dea remained aggressive. Bowman followed with a putback attempt and was fouled, converting both free throws to push the lead to 16-11.
Shorewood answered at the line, where Jaden Marlow converted one free throw to close the quarter with O’Dea leading 16-12.
The second quarter quickly turned into a defensive battle as both teams tightened up. Nearly two minutes passed before Bowman broke the scoring drought with a powerful dunk that extended O’Dea’s lead to 18-12. Brooks followed with a smooth layup. As the scoring continued to go back and forth each possession, Shorewood began to find its rhythm. On the other hand, O’Dea’s energy and momentum didn’t dwindle, as Webster drained another three-point shot, making the score 22-14. Momentum briefly shifted when Bowman picked up his second foul on the next possession, sending him to the bench and bringing Giulio Banchero back into the game.
Tyler Marlow managed to add a jump shot to narrow the gap to 22-16 and quickly called a timeout with 4:42 remaining in the first half. The Fighting Irish then came out of the brief break shining, as Orbino quickly sank a three-pointer, keeping O’Dea in the lead at 25-16. Shorewood followed with a slight 4-0 run led by Tyler Marlow, cutting the deficit to 25-20.
Late in the half, O’Dea regained momentum. Webster and Woodard III combined for several baskets, and Woodard added another emphatic block that ignited the crowd.
With less than a minute remaining, O’Dea had built a 31-22 lead. Shorewood answered with a three-point play from Thomas Moles, who converted an and-one opportunity to make it 31-24.
The final seconds of the half produced a quick burst of scoring. Banchero added a free throw for O’Dea, Jaden Marlow responded with one of his own, and Brooks capped the half with a near buzzer-beating three-pointer that sent the Fighting Irish into halftime with a 35-26 lead.
Webster led O’Dea in the first half with 18 points, while Tyler Marlow paced Shorewood with nine.
To get the new half started, Bowman finished under the hoop for two, pushing the lead to an 11-point advantage. The Stormrays and the Fighting Irish traded baskets again, including two-point conversions at the line for both Webster and Shorewood’s Kevin Cambronero, bringing the score to 41-32 in favor of O’Dea.
O’Dea extended its advantage early in the third quarter as Bowman opened the half with a strong finish under the basket, pushing the Fighting Irish lead to 11.
The teams continued to trade baskets through the middle of the quarter. Webster added points at the free-throw line, while Shorewood’s Kevin Cambronero answered with two of his own to keep the Stormrays within reach as the score moved to 41-32 in O’Dea’s favor.
Webster, who has been a key component for O’Dea, was then sent to the line and successfully completed a three-point play before head coach Jason Kerr called a 30-second timeout with 4:51 left on the clock. The Stormrays were unable to connect on a shot under the rim after the break, but Woodard III quickly responded with a putback, pushing the Fighting Irish’s lead to 46-32. Cambronero briefly sparked Shorewood with a three-pointer that cut the deficit to 46-35 and prompted another Stormrays timeout.
Although Shorewood tightened its defense after regrouping, O’Dea maintained control on the glass. Bowman secured an offensive rebound and converted the putback to stretch the lead to 48-35.
Moments later, Bowman scored again underneath, giving O’Dea its largest lead of the game at 50-35.
Shorewood closed the quarter with a late push. Jaden Marlow scored four straight points to end the period, trimming the deficit to 50-39 heading into the fourth quarter.
The final quarter began with a series of turnovers as both teams struggled to settle into an offensive rhythm. Shorewood had the first possession but couldn’t capitalize during the early scramble.
Eventually, the Stormrays broke through. Tyler Marlow completed an and-one play to narrow the margin to 50-41 and give Shorewood a brief spark of momentum. However, Webster struck again with a three-point shot that caused his teammates to jump to their feet.
Shorewood called timeout with 6:05 remaining in an attempt to slow the momentum. The break briefly stalled scoring as both teams missed opportunities on the following possessions.
With 4:24 left, Kerr called a full timeout after Webster picked up his third foul.
The Fighting Irish responded immediately coming out of the break. Brooks drove to the basket and finished an and-one play, converting the free throw to extend the lead to 56-43.
In the final minutes, the Marlow brothers collectively chipped in five points to bring the score to 58-48, with 1:38 on the clock. With a slight chance of taking out the Fighting Irish in the elimination game, Shorewood called a timeout, and after Brooks converted one point at the free-throw line, Shorewood’s Thomas Moles sank a jump shot, cutting the deficit to 59-50. To close out the victory, Webster and Orbino collectively converted three out of four points at the free-throw line, sealing a 62-52 victory over Shorewood.
After the game, Kerr said it was an overall good battle.
“Day one it is always a bit of a slow pace, in terms of guys getting adjusted to the environment,” said Kerr. “Getting the nerves and jitters out. We executed the defense really well today, so I am very proud of them for that.”
O’Dea advances to play Rainier Beach tomorrow at 10:30 am, and Shorewood’s season comes to an end.
Webster led the Fighting Irish with 29 points, 6 rebounds, and 1 assist, while Tyler Marlow led the Stormrays with 20 points and 2 rebounds.
Pictorial Highlights of O’Dea vs Shorewood
Photos/Tyler Artis
