Blackhawks back on top in Golden Feather game

By JOHN MCCALLUM

Editor

Cheney boys basketball head coach Gregg Smith noted that his team's win over Medical Lake in the annual Golden Feather Spirit Game snapped a three-game losing streak to the Cardinals.

Actually, it was only two as the Blackhawks won 69-53 in 2014. But Cheney lost the previous year, 2013, and besides, who cares.

The important thing is the Blackhawks snapped a three-game losing streak this season by downing the sixth-ranked 1A Cardinals 65-56 in a hard-fought, if not exactly elegantly played rivalry game last Thursday in Medical Lake. Fouls plagued both squads and neither team shot especially well, a likely symptom of the emotion and energy surging through the Cardinals' gym.

"We shot 15 for 59, which is a little over 25 percent," ML head coach Noel Hachtel said. "That low a percentage, you have to hit your field goals."

At just under 35 percent, Cheney wasn't much better, although Smith felt they were "decent for a spirit game." The Blackhawks were 16 for 46 from 2-point range and 4 for 12 from beyond the 3-point arc, but the key was when they made their shots.

Cheney never trailed, making the first couple of buckets of the game and running out to a 12-2 lead early in first quarter. Medical Lake pulled within five at 26-21 before both teams went cold midway through the second quarter, and made it 26-22 at the half on a free throw by Trenten Garza.

The keys to the game came down to a pair of runs. For Hachtel, that came early in the third quarter when the Blackhawks used an 11-4 spurt to open a 37-26 lead with 4 minutes, 30 seconds to go in the quarter.

But Medical Lake again closed the gap, getting a buzzer-beating 3 by Drew Hostetter and another 3 to open the fourth quarter to pull within 41-35. That's when the run Smith points to as the decider kicked into gear.

Cheney outscored the Cardinals 13-2 over roughly the next five minutes, including a four-point play when junior Justace Reiter was fouled on his 3-point make, to take a 54-37 lead. In the final 2:50, Medical Lake's rally attempts were answered by Cheney baskets and free throws.

"After that, we just controlled the game," Smith said. "We had exceptional passing against the press. We kept our composure, made passes and made layins."

Jaylen Worthem led Cheney with 16 points. But while the senior was the only Blackhawk in double figures, he had six teammates who were close as Cameron Hardt added nine, Devin Cook, Camden VerStrate, Reiter and Landon West each had eight with Drake Johnson chipping in seven.

Medical Lake was led by Garza's 18 points while Nizhole Sherman and Xavier Warmink-Butler each added eight.

Cheney was 61.7 percent at the free throw line, 21 for 34, while Medical Lake went 19 for 29, 65.6 percent. Rebounding was about even, 41 for the Cardinals and 42 for the Blackhawks. Cheney committed just nine turnovers - Smith said their goal was 13 or less - while the Cardinals made 17 mistakes.

"Cheney, they were real patient," Hachtel said. "The turnovers we committed weren't necessarily because of their press - a few of them were. A lot of them were just mental mistakes, we threw it away, to the wrong person."

"It was the best four quarters we've played," Smith said.

Cheney Free Press staff reporter Paul Delaney contributed to this story.

John McCallum can be reached at jmac@cheneyfreepress.com.