Boys power through for Senior Night victory

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The East Jefferson Rivals boys basketball team’s playoff hopes are still alive after a too-close-for-comfort win against the Klahowya Secondary School Eagles Friday.

The Rivals hosted the game at Port Townsend High on Senior Night, Feb. 4.

East Jefferson outscored the Eagles 51-44 to notch a fourth (third-in-conference) win to their record and extend hopes for a late playoff push.

“For our team and for our seniors, it feels awesome,” Rivals Coach Emanuel Abbott said of the victory. “It was probably a little closer than what I thought it would’ve been.”

Seniors Murphy Kleiman, Owen Thornton, Andrew Lane, Cade Martin, and Lonnie Kenney started for the Rivals.

The energetic affair kicked off with a bang as Kenney and Thornton drained multiple shots from the paint and from deep to give EJ a significant lead.

The Rivals’ defense held steady and kept Klahowya from making any threes, and the scoreboard read 16-9 Rivals at the end of the opening quarter.

The Eagles started to fly high in the second period, dropping 10 points on the Rivals. EJ answered with nine points of their own to hold on to the lead at halftime with the score at 25-19.

After half, East Jefferson really found their footing.

The Rivals ripped through Klahowya’s defense, exposing their weaknesses through slick passing between players and smart shots to grow the lead.

Kenney got to the free-throw line four separate times and punished the Eagles for errant fouls. Sophomore Brody Moore heated up from deep in the third.

And near the end of the period, Moore drained a deep three and the home crowd responded with a bellowing roar of approval. It was 42-30 Rivals at the end of the third.

In the final period, Klahowya started to cut into EJ’s lead. The Eagles played lockdown defense and kept the Rivals’ top scorers from netting any easy baskets.

Klahowya closed in on the Rivals, but EJ held on to the lead to secure a Senior Night victory and a critical mark in the win column, to keep their playoff aspirations intact.

Kenney led EJ on points with 21, followed by Moore with nine, and Thornton and Michael Petta tied at five points apiece.

EJ secured the win, but both teams were disgruntled with the referees, who’d earned the ire of the crowd for their officiating. They handed out multiple technical fouls to players on both teams and delayed the game for around 45 minutes after having problems coordinating with scoreboard officials.

“Between the fouls, technicals, I don’t know,” Abbott said of the officiating after a long pause.

“It was a bit of a cluster out there for a while. I mean it’s 7:30 [p.m.],” he added, referencing the length of delays that caused the EJ girls basketball game to be delayed by close to an hour.

Regardless of the referees, Abbott praised his team’s performance and discussed their next matchup against Vashon Island High School.

“Rebounds, defense; we’re going to have to play a full four quarters and not have to wait like we did the last time we played them,” Abbott said of Vashon Island. “We’re gonna have to play as a team and go from there.”

The Rivals lost their following matchup against Vashon Island High 47-25 Monday, Feb. 7.

East Jefferson Rivals