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Wednesday, February 19, 2025

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Rainier Beach Heads Into The Postseason On A Positive Note

Rainier Beach’s Miles Gurske shoots over a West Seattle defender. Staff photo/Aaron Allen.

By RayJaun Stelly, The Seattle Medium

In the final game of the Metro League’s regular season schedule, Rainier Beach and West Seattle squared off in late season tune-up for both teams. In their previous meeting, Rainier Beach sophomore Kaden Powers scored on a buzzer-beating three-pointer to give Rainier Beach a 60-57 road victory over the Wildcats.

Having already solidified the third seed in the Metro League playoffs, Vikings had an opportunity to build on their 79-78 road victory against Eastside Catholic and honor their seniors at home on Rainier Beach’s Crawford Court.

Led by Head Coach Mike Bethea, Rainier Beach used their defense to gain early momentum of the game. Their full court press and man-to-man defense was able to fluster West Seattle, which created turnovers that allowed the Vikings’ Ryan Mpouli to get out on the fastbreak and bring fans to their feet with his high-flying dunks and soaring layups.

Mpouli would help the Vikings run out to a 16-6 lead, forcing West Seattle to call two timeouts in the game’s first quarter.

Following their second timeout, West Seattle would finish the first quarter on a 13-2 run courtesy of Bo Gionet’s fade away jump shot and three-pointer at the buzzer. During the run, the Wildcats’ Chase Clifton scored on a three-point play, Luke Wade connected on a three-point shot, and Ryder Mackay’s converted on a short bank shot for West Seattle.

Defensively, West Seattle held the Vikings to just two points in the final two minutes of the quarter, as they took a 19-18 lead into the second quarter.

The second quarter would be filled with both teams trading baskets. Powers came off the bench for Rainier Beach and provided instant offense as he hit two three-pointers and a fadeaway shot with a West Seattle defender draped over him. Mpouli picked up where he left off in the first quarter, as he continued to get steals and score points for the Vikings.

“Each of us have a unique leadership [role] on the team which helps set a different tempo from start to finish,” said Powers. “So, I think that right there sets the tone to hit the spark [that we need] to get everyone involved.”

Down but not out, West Seattle battled back as they also found success by getting everybody involved. As a team, the Wildcats were able to break Rainier Beach’s full-court press as Tre Pryor, Mackay, Clifton, and Wade finished everything around the rim. Whether it was wide open layups or layups for second chance points, the Wildcats made sure to capitalize on their opportunities.

Despite trading baskets throughout the quarter, Rainier Beach was able to score 22 points and secure a 40-34 lead going into halftime.

Taking a page out of what helped them become successful early on, Rainier Beach’s defense came alive and began making things very difficult for their opponent in the second half.

The Viking quite simply did not allow West Seattle to get comfortable within their own offense. They made it difficult for them to get the ball across halfcourt, didn’t allow them to get clean looks at the basket, and contested everything at the rim.

In the meantime, the Vikings defensive effort allowed senior guard Miles Gurske to find his rhythm offensively. Gurske was not only able to facilitate Rainier Beach’s offense and keep his teammates involved, but he was also able to create his own shot off the dribble. Leaving defenders confused as he spun off them to finish at the basket, cutting to the basket for an open layup, and shooting a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line, Gurske helped the Vikings score 20-plus points for the second straight quarter, as they held West Seattle to just nine points.

Successful on both offense and defense, Rainier Beach was able to extend their lead from 6 to 17 at the end of the third quarter. Still applying pressure regardless of the score in the fourth quarter, Rainier Beach freshman Patrice Mpouli and senior Mario Clark would keep their team’s momentum going and fans cheering as they both managed to make shots on the perimeter and finished at the rim.

Putting together a complete game despite being down by one-point at the end of the opening quarter, Rainier Beach never trailed after securing a halftime lead and the majority of their success could be attributed to their defense that wreaked havoc on West Seattle for 32 minutes.

In the end, Rainier Beach was victorious once the final horn sounded off, beating West Seattle 81-58. The Vikings will now face Seattle Prep in the Metro League playoffs.

“It was great, especially being senior night. Everyone brought an instant spark when they got in,” said Powers. “We all wanted to play extremely well to get all the seniors involved and all have fun.”

Pictorial Highlights of Rainier Beach vs West Seattle Boys

Staff Photos/Aaron Allen