Enumclaw upends Foss on road in key league matchup, takes 2A SPSL lead

Enumclaw High School boys basketball is now alone at the top of the Class 2A South Puget Sound League standings.

Tuesday night in Tacoma, the Hornets scored early and often, consistently secured rebounds at both ends of the floor, and held on late to upend Foss, 69-64, on the road.

The two programs entered the evening with one loss apiece in 2A SPSL play — Enumclaw to Foss back in December, and Foss to Clover Park last week.

But, the Hornets (14-2) are now in front after improving to 11-1 in league play with the victory, while Foss (14-4) drops to second in the 2A SPSL standings at 10-2.

Each program has four league games remaining on the regular season schedule before the district playoffs begin in February.

“Anytime you can put yourself in position is great, especially as the season is winding down,” Hornets coach Terry Johnson said. “But, I think more importantly for us is just beating a really, really good team. Especially on the road.

“We have a lot of respect for Foss. We know how talented they are and how hard they play. They got us earlier in the season, so for our guys to respond, it was just a good win against a really good team.”

The first time these two programs met in December, Foss posted a double-digit win, besting the Hornets, 71-59, in Enumclaw.

Since? The Hornets have rattled off nine consecutive 2A SPSL victories.

“We were still kind of trying to figure out who we are and what our identity is, and I think we’ve kind of found that at this point in the season,” Johnson said.

Tuesday at Foss, the Hornets controlled the lead most of the way.

Jamie Killian-Howard and Jonathan Martin connected on 3-pointers early to give Foss a quick 6-0 advantage, but Noah Seabrands answered with a pair of baskets from the perimeter to tie it up.

The Falcons then took a 9-6 lead on a Keshawn Lewis 3-pointer, but Enumclaw responded with a 13-0 run, and never trailed again.

The Hornets led by seven at the end of the first quarter, 11 by halftime, and pushed the lead as high as 12 early in the third.

Enumclaw’s lead hovered around two or three possessions much of the second half, but the Falcons gradually chipped away at what was an eight-point lead entering the final quarter.

Foss cut the lead to 60-59 with 1:58 to go on the first of two free throws from Ebraheem Dobashi, but a lane violation on the second attempt negated what would have been the tying basket.

Wyatt Neu responded with a bucket for Enumclaw at the other end on a short jumper, and Carter DeRosier pushed the lead to 65-59 on the last of his six 3-pointers with 1:01 left.

Aiden Finley answered with a 3-pointer for the Falcons seven seconds later, but again Enumclaw responded when DeRosier hit a jumper from the free throw line following a Hornets offensive rebound to make it 67-62 with 25 seconds to go.

“We just had to trust each other as a team,” DeRosier said of the Hornets’ response to Foss’ late rally.

Finley cut the lead back to one possession on a driving layup moments later, but Enumclaw then ran the clock under 10 seconds before Foss could foul.

Seabrands secured an offensive rebound after the front end of a one-and-one bounced off the back of the rim, and made both shots on the next trip to the line with 4.7 seconds left to close out the victory.

DeRosier scored a game-high 23 points for the Hornets and had seven rebounds and four assists. Seabrands added 16 points, seven boards and four assists and Neu had 12 points, eight rebounds and three assists. Ty Hansen had six points and added nine boards for a Hornets team that outrebounded the Falcons, 37-14.

“Our guys fight, and one of the things against really good teams is you just have to fight for possessions,” Johnson said. “We talked about winning 50-50 balls, making sure we were giving ourselves the opportunities that we needed, and our guys just fight.

“They’re fighting for possessions and they’re fighting together the whole game, and that’s just kind of how we play all the time.”

Foss had three players in double figures, led by Finley with a team-high 21 points. Killian-Howard added 14 points, three rebounds and three steals, and Lewis had 12 points, four rebounds, three assists and three steals.

The Falcons continue 2A SPSL play Thursday at White River (9-7), while Enumclaw hosts Clover Park (8-5).