(Victorious WSHS girls right after the final buzzer)

FIRST REPORT, 4:59 PM: We’re back in Bellevue at Sammamish High School, where the West Seattle High School girls have just won a hard-fought victory over Bellevue HS in a district semifinal game, 54-46. Regulation ended with a 42-42 tie, after the Wildcats trailed for much of the game – but they dominated in the extra four minutes. Next up, the district championship game at Bellevue College on Saturday night, 8:15 pm, against the winner of tonight’s Garfield-Cleveland game. Photos and details from today’s game later!

ADDED PHOTOS AND DETAILS, 11:04 PM: The Wildcat girls needed a while to figure Bellevue out. The Wolverines leaped out to a 7-0 lead before WSHS #32 Meghan Fiso netted her team’s first entry on the scoreboard after one and three-quarters minutes.

She topped the points totals for West Seattle, with 16, and helped them break through at some key moments – at 3:10 to go in the first quarter, her first three-pointer tied the score at 10-all. But in general, in the early going, the Wildcats had trouble with everything from outside shooting to rebounding to defense – it seemed Bellevue often had somebody unguarded and perfectly in place for an assist. Or, they were right there when a momentary loss of ball control provided an opportunity. #21 Julianna Horne followed Fiso’s three with one of her own and that gave WSHS the lead at 13-10. Seven unanswered Bellevue points followed, though, and the Wolverines led 17-13 at the end of the first quarter. They kept the lead throughout the second quarter and went into the locker room at halftime ahead 25-17.

As the second half got going, West Seattle had stepped up its usually relentless defense, playing Bellevue closer than before. Both benches were intensely engaged, too, with not only cheers for successes but cheers for opponents’ fouls or losses of possession. But in this quarter, shooting was the weakest spot for the Wildcats – too many outside shots taken and missed. They, to be sure, were forcing Bellevue to try from outside, too. But things looked a bit bleak when they reached the midpoint in the third quarter and still hadn’t made up ground, Bellevue leading 30-21 after a three-pointer at 3:23 to go in the third, then adding a basket half a minute later to go up by 11 points.

That could have been the turning point. But WSHS #11 Jasmine Gayles wasn’t going to let it happen. She got a foul shot and a basket, along the way to being the team’s second-leading scorer of the day with 11.

Before the quarter ended, #4 Kelsey Lenzie – who fouled out in the OT period – snared a big three-pointer and that closed the gap to five going into the 4th quarter, which Fiso started for the Wildcats with two baskets, as she and her teammates suddenly caught fire, while the Wolverines went cold.

A clutch three-pointer by #24 Anissa Babitu (number-three WSHS scorer with 9) tied it up 34-34 with 5:30 to go in the game, and that was key, along with a Fiso three that followed.

The next few minutes were nailbiters, with ties, one=point leads for each side … Bellevue was up 39-37 with a minute and a half to go and then Gayles’ big three-pointer put the Wildcats ahead again, 40-39.

But by regulation’s end it was 42-42 – and four extra minutes would determine who made it to the district championship game. Those extra minutes were dominated by the Wildcats, with back-to-back threes from Gayles and Lenzie giving them a relatively quick six-point lead. The Wolverines never got close, and WSHS triumphed, 54-46. We now know who they’ll play Saturday night – Cleveland, which edged WSHS by three points in the Metro semifinals, but lost to the Wildcats by 10 points a week earlier.

(Photos by Max Westerman for WSB. Above, SLHS #14, junior Madison Jensen)

A must-win game is up next for another local team that’s still going in the postseason – the Seattle Lutheran High School girls. Tonight in the SLHS gym, they lost a hard-fought game to Friday Harbor, 33-13. All but two of those points were scored by #24, senior Izzy Jones:

The other two were contributed by #21, freshman Melina Menashe:

The Saints will play 5:45 pm Friday at Sedro-Woolley High School, vs. the winner of tonight’s Orcas Island/La Conner districts game.

Closer this time – but not close enough. Tonight at Sammamish High School in Bellevue, the West Seattle High School boys faced Rainier Beach for the second time in less than a week. This time, the Vikings won 76-63 – less than half the margin of last week’s loss, but a loss nonetheless. Tonight’s standout for the Wildcats was #2 Elijah Nnanabu with 26 points (top photo). #5 Abdullahi Mohamed had 11.

Eight points from #24 Simon Harris:

And five from #23 Anthony Giomi had 5.

Next up, head coach Keffrey Fazio‘s Wildcats have a must-win game at 3:30 pm Friday, again at Sammamish HS, playing Bellevue, who lost tonight to O’Dea (a team West Seattle had beaten in the early postseason).

(WSB video: First-half setup resulting in #32 Meghan Fiso basket)

5:11 PM: We’re at Sammamish High School in Bellevue, where the West Seattle High School girls have just advanced in the district playoffs with a victory over Seattle Prep, 72-60. Photos and details to come later tonight. The girls play here again at 3:30 pm Thursday vs. the winner of tonight’s Rainier Beach vs. Bellevue game.

ADDED 11:20 PM: Bellevue won that game, so like the boys, the girls also will face Bellevue next – but in this case, the girls, defending district champs, will be vying for a berth in the finals. Here’s how today’s game went vs. the Panthers:

The Wildcats were already out to a 10-3 lead when we arrived a few minutes into the game. But the Panthers clawed their way back and tied it 10-10 with 3 minutes to go in the first quarter. West Seattle didn’t let them get beyond that, and led 18-14 going into the second quarter.

Their lead didn’t widen much until a three-pointer by #32 Meghan Fiso with two minutes to go. She was the top WSHS scorer with 24:

Those two minutes before halftime did not go Westside’s way. After that Fiso three, the Panthers answered with 2 threes of their own. WSHS #34 Anissa Babitu nailed one too – but with an ensuing basket and foul shot, Prep was just one point behind, headed into the locker room for the mid-game break, 33-32.

They did not start the second half with a good look – Prep had a shot-clock violation. After a Fiso bucket, #20 Grace Sarver was fouled, and coolly sunk both shots. She brought in 11 points:

The pattern continued through much of the second half – neither team dominated; the Wildcats kept a few points ahead most of the way, but had some trouble hanging onto the ball, and briefly lost the lead at 2:20 left in the third quarter, when Prep moved ahead, 43-41. Two Sarver baskets, and scrappy ball-handling by #11 Jasmine Gayles (8-point game), helped take care of that problem:

Shortly thereafter, Fiso sunk two in a row, and the third quarter ended with the Wildcats up 50-43. They kept the lead the rest of the way, with everyone contributing, including #4 Kelsey Lenzie (8-point game):

Prep got within three at 5:40 to go but a huge Sarver three-pointer doubled the WSHS lead at that point and it got wider from there, into double digits in the final two minutes, a 15-point lead just before Prep’s final basket proved to be the game’s final scoring, with head coach Darnell Taylor‘s Wildcats winning 72-60 and heading into the district semifinals.

(4th-quarter basket by WSHS #23 Anthony Giomi)

FIRST REPORT, 6:25 PM: In the second of two district-playoff games this afternoon/evening at West Seattle High School, the WSHS boys have just defeated Lake Washington, 46-36. Photos and details to be added later. With the win, the WSHS boys will play Rainier Beach at 5 pm Tuesday (February 13th) at Sammamish HS in Bellevue, right after the Wildcat girls’ 3:30 pm game vs. Seattle Prep.

ADDED 11:11 PM: Here’s how the game unfolded for head coach Keffrey Fazio and his team – far more defense than offense, as you can tell from the score. #1 Marcus Collins, West Seattle’s top scorer in the game with 8 points, got the team’s first basket.

That tied things at 2-2. And after a bit of lead-swapping, they were tied again when the first quarter ended, 7-7. Overall, the Wildcats were having an off-day on the boards. Things got a little better in the second quarter, starting with #23 Anthony Giomi (7 points) opening a three-point lead with a basket and foul shot.

#3 Kendall Green followed with a three-pointer on an assist by #32 Maar Rambang, and suddenly WSHS was up by six. A couple of baskets by #5 Abdullahi Mohamed (8 points) in the ensuing minutes helped the Wildcats keep the lead despite a Lake Washington three-pointer shortly before halftime taking the score to 19-15.

A somewhat sloppy start to the second half gave way to a strong scoring run including back-to-back baskets by Collins, and then one by #2 Elijah Nnanabu, giving WSHS a 12-point lead. The Wildcats held a 9-point lead over the Kangaroos by the end of the third quarter, and then it was a matter of digging in to stay ahead. Lake Washington got to within six points at midpoint in the final quarter – 36 to 30 – and a three-pointer a few minutes later made it a five-point margin, 38-33. The Kangaroos tried the time-honored tactic of fouling their opponents, repeatedly, to see if they could make some magic happen, but the resulting WSHS foul shots just widened the Wildcats’ lead, and time ran out for Lake Washington, losing 46-36. As mentioned above, West Seattle’s Tuesday opponent is Rainier Beach, and that’ll be the third Wildcats-Vikings faceoff this season.

(West Seattle’s top scorer today, #11 Jasmine Gayles, with an end-of-first-half basket)

FIRST REPORT, 4:28 PM: Just concluded at West Seattle High School, the girls’ first game in district basketball playoffs, and it was a victory – 67-55 over Mercer Island. Photos and details later. The Wildcat girls now advance to the next round, with a game at 3:30 pm Tuesday (February 13th) at Sammamish High School (100 140th Ave SE in Bellevue), against Seattle Prep.

ADDED 10:03 PM: Head coach Darnell Taylor and his team had a lot of strategizing to do to keep this one in the W corner. Twice, they pulled out to a sizable lead, only to have the Islanders recover.

First time was fairly early on – the Wildcats were ahead 11-2 by midway through the first quarter, but that lead was down to three points as the second quarter began, 15-12. In the second quarter, Mercer Island fought to a 20-17 lead after two 3-pointers, with 5 minutes to go until halftime. But the Westsiders didn’t give up, and after baskets by #20 Grace Sarver (12 points) and #11 Jasmine Gayles, (17 points) they had the lead back, 21-20. They kept building on that and were out to a 31-22 lead at halftime.

The Wildcats dominated the early minutes of the second half, expanding their lead to 16 points before Mercer Island started their second comeback attempt – with 11 unanswered points before the end of the third quarter. West Seattle was still ahead – 43-38 – but the Islanders were within striking distance.

#4 Kelsey Lenzie ended the scoring drought with a basket at 7:15 to go, on an assist from Sarver. The two repeated the feat less than half a minute later, and the Wildcats had a little breathing room, 47-38. #1 Kaiya Mar added a three-pointer at 5:26, and WSHS had momentum.

By 3:40, they’d opened up to 56-42 after #32 Meghan Fiso (6 points) got a three on an assist from #21 Julianna Horne (11 points).

At 2:30, the margin was 19 points and victory was looking certain; Mercer Island made up a little of that ground but not enough, and the final score was 67-55. As mentioned above, Seattle Prep is next for the WSHS girls, four weeks after they beat the Panthers by six points.

Another disappointing night for the West Seattle High School basketball teams, losing the third-place games in the Metro League tournament. But both already had locked up spots in the district tournament just by making it to the Metro championships, so each has at least one more game left in the postseason. Tonight the boys lost a close one to Cleveland, 47-44, playing at Chief Sealth IHS. And the girls fell to Garfield, 56-47, playing a Nathan Hale HS. The district brackets aren’t filled out yet, but so far it appears both teams will play on Saturday night, details TBA.

(WSB photos)

Though basketball is in the high-school-sports spotlight right now, seven West Seattle High School athletes are celebrating scholarships for other sports, and we were there for their ceremonial signings on Wednesday afternoon, as were proud family members.

The student-athletes are:

Alex Pastrana – Linfield University, football; majoring in exercise science
Ben Dagg – Carroll College, soccer; majoring in physics
Reed Lower – Santa Clara University, rower; majoring in business
Cass Elliott – University of Washington, track and field; majoring in business
Lucy Mead – Bradley University, softball; majoring in business
Hailey Hirano – University of New York, soccer; majoring in business
Joseph Kirk-Woodbury – Olympic Junior College (Bremerton), track and field; majoring in nursing

Wednesday night was the first time all season that the West Seattle High School girls had lost to a Metro League opponent – and it was in their first game of the Metro tournament. It took overtime to bring them down, with Cleveland winning 63-60. #32 Meghan Fiso was top scorer with 21 points:

#4 Kelsey Lenzie had 19:

And #20 Grace Sarver brought in 11:

The Wildcats were up by five at halftime, 32-27, but in the second half, they had trouble hanging onto the ball, and their shooting grew chilly. They were still up after the third quarter, 46-40, but then Cleveland tied it at 54 and forced the OT, which went the Eagles’ way.

Tonight (Thursday) at Nathan Hale HS at 7:30 pm, the girls play Garfield for Metro third place. They already are guaranteed a district-tournament berth, either Saturday or Tuesday, depending on what happens tonight.

A disappointing Wednesday night for both West Seattle High School basketball teams. The boys fell to Rainier Beach, 73-43:

(WSB photos)

Beach took the win in their previous meetup last month, but that one was only by four points. This time, the Wildcats were down by seven points after the first quarter, and the deficit widened every quarter thereafter. Top scorer was #23 Anthony Giomi with 14 points.

#24 Simon Harris had 9:

And #5 Abdullahi Mohamed, 8:

The West Seattle boys play Cleveland for Metro third place Thursday night, 7:30 pm at Chief Sealth International High School (2600 SW Thistle). And they’re already guaranteed at least one appearance in the district tournament, which starts Saturday.

(#2 Elijah Nnanabu, top scorer for WSHS)

FIRST REPORT, 8:27 PM: That was a nailbiter for a few minutes – but the West Seattle High School boys pulled it out and just beat O’Dea on the Fighting Irish home court on First Hill, 59-55. Next up in the Metro League championships, they play Rainier Beach at 8:30 pm Wednesday at Seattle Pacific University. We’ll have photos and more about the game after we get back to HQ.

ADDED 11:56 PM: It was the thriller on First Hill. Though the Wildcats ended the first quarter up 10 points, and had a 12-point lead for a bit in the second quarter, much of the second half was a lot closer. West Seattle outfought the Fighting Irish, but not without some nailbiting moments. And a lot of cheering by the passionate fan base that crossed the bay for the game.

The lead changed hands for the first few minutes, until WSHS started to settle into the upper hand. They had lost to O’Dea by just two points in the regular season, and didn’t seem too mystified by their opponents’ game plan.

The Wildcat defense forced O’Dea to try lots of outside shots – generally without success. West Seattle had better luck getting inside, including a reverse shot by #2 Elijah Nnanabu – the night’s top scorer with 18 – early on. That really energized the crowd.

O’Dea’s cold-handed shooting was particularly in evidence in the second quarter. The Wildcats had ample rebounding opportunities, and #5 Abdullahi Mohamed excelled. He got the basket that widened West Seattle’s lead to 12 points in the second quarter.

O’Dea started chipping away at that lead for a while. WSHS kicked the defense up a notch, and when they got the ball back, kept powering through:

But the lead was down to five points at halftime, 28-23. Out of the gate in the second half, #23 Anthony Giomi – second-leading Wildcat scorer with 16 – hit the first basket.

They couldn’t pull away, and the Fighting Irish got too close for comfort – narrowing the gap to three points by 5:15 to go in the third quarter. West Seattle stepped up their game again, but O’Dea sensed an opening and tightened up the defense in the waning moments of the third quarter, getting within two in its final minute.

(WSHS head coach Keffrey Fazio)

In the fourth quarter’s early going, O’Dea was suddenly just one point down, 42-41. A pivotal possession for WSHS at 5:34 led to a basket, and the crowd roared. A foul shot widened the lead to four points. But there was no pulling away, despite exciting moments like a steal that led to another Nnanabu bucket. With three minutes to go, the WSHS section in the bleachers was doing some footstomping. At 2:45, the lead was opened to six points, 50-44.

#24 Simon Harris added two points to that with a basket at 2:05. Victory was in view – but still not a sure thing, and two minutes can be forever in basketball. In fact, it almost was – an O’Dea three-pointer with :45 to go turned a five-point WSHS lead into two. But they just wouldn’t let O’Dea get any closer than that, and the final was 59-55.

ONE MORE THING ABOUT WEDNESDAY: It’ll be a WSHS doubleheader at Seattle Pacific University – the girls play Cleveland at 7 pm, before the boys face Rainier Beach at 8:30.

(UPDATED SATURDAY NIGHT with playoff info)

(WSB photos by Patrick Sand)

Unlike the girls’ game that preceded it, last night’s Chief Sealth @ West Seattle boys-varsity game was relatively suspenseful – though the Wildcats won, 58-52, there were longer stretches in which you felt it could have gone either way. And the fans that filled both sides of the gym seemed to be hanging on every play like a dunking player who won’t let go of the rim.

Sealth #14 Sadique Calloway led scoring with 18 points. He and his teammates roared out to a 6-0 lead before West Seattle got on the scoreboard midway through the first quarter.

Despite a flurry of three-pointers, the first quarter ended with the relatively low score of 13-10, in the Seahawks’ favor. They kept the edge well into the second quarter, until an intense round of turnovers ended with a basket by #23 Anthony Giomi, who was West Seattle’s top scorer with 15.

Next for WSHS with 13 points was #1 Marcus Collins, followed by #5 Abdullahi Mohamed with 11, same tally as Sealth #22 Elijah Jackson. The Wildcats tied the Seahawks at 23-all with less than two minutes to go in the half – and the scoreboard went dark for a long moment. Shortly after it came back, West Seattle took the lead, and took it into the locker room at halftime, 26-24.

WSHS head coach Keffrey Fazio‘s team held the lead most of the way from there, though CSIHS head coach Colin Slingsby and team never let them run away with it. The Seahawks kept aggressively angling for steals and achieved some. The third quarter wrapped with WSHS ahead 42-36.

Then it was time to settle things. Here’s a short clip of fourth-quarter action:

The fans stayed dug into the action, as Sealth kept trying to knock away at West Seattle’s lead, which was up to 8 with less than a minute and a half left, and starting to look permanent. But it got a little closer in the final minute, and Sealth seemed to have an outside chance – until the unavoidable fouling to pry away the ball resulted in foul shots and added points. And the buzzer sounded with WSHS six points ahead.

Senior Night acknowledgments preceded the boys-varsity game:

The varsity team is losing six seniors – #2 Elijah Nnanabu, #3 Kendall Green,, #11 Jackson Golgart, #15 Cass Elliott, #23 Anthony Giomi, and #24 Simon Harris. But first, the postseason awaits, and as with the girls, the boys will find out soon what’s next.

ADDED SATURDAY NIGHT: According to the Metro League website, the WSHS boys are scheduled to play O’Dea at 7 pm Monday (February 5th) at that school’s First Hill campus (802 Terry Ave.; map).

(UPDATED SATURDAY NIGHT with playoff info)

(WSB photos by Patrick Sand)

The high-school basketball regular season closed in raucous style Friday night at the jampacked West Seattle High School gym, as the Wildcats were visited by the crosstown competition, the Chief Sealth International High School Seahawks. The girls’ varsity game started unusually – West Seattle reserves played most of the first quarter, which began with each team getting a technical foul for what we’re told were numbering problems. By the time the first quarter ticked down to two minutes, the players on the floor were mostly varsity.

Sealth’s #3 Celia LaGuardia led all scorers with 24 points. For West Seattle, #20 Grace Sarver was tops with 20.

She came into the game with about three minutes to go in the first, and that’s when WSHS started chipping away at Sealth’s early lead. #32 Meghan Fiso tied it up at 11-11 with less than :20 to go in the quarter – she was the Wildcats’ second-leading scorer on the night with 14 points.

#2 Jasmine Smith had 13 for Sealth:

The Seahawks kept close for much of the second quarter. Baskets were answered, and they didn’t give West Seattle much of a chance to pull away – until the last few minutes of the half, when the Wildcats piled on 12 unanswered points, and went into the locker room with a 37-23 lead.

They held Sealth scoreless for the first three-plus minutes of the second half, until a foul shot that put the score at WSHS 46, Sealth 24. The gap continued to widen, with the third quarter ending WSHS 56, Sealth 30, and nothing much changed in the fourth quarter – though the big crowd, packed on both sides of the gym, kept the energy high, all the way to the final buzzer, with the Wildcats winning 76-51.

P.S. This was senior night for West Seattle – just one varsity player is graduating this year, #5 Rilcy Newsome:

The JV team has three seniors – Kathryn Anawalt, Hanan Yassin, and Rosa Grossi – we were a bit late to the pregame recognition and didn’t catch everyone on camera:

Senior cheerleaders Sophia Grupp and Kat Morigi were celebrated too!

We’ll find out within a few days who’s playing where in the postseason.

ADDED SATURDAY NIGHT: According to the Metro League website, the WSHS girls will play their first Metro League tournament game at 7 pm Wednesday (February 7th) at Seattle Pacific University (3307 3rd Ave. W.; map), vs. Cleveland or Ballard (whichever wins their Monday night game).

Tenth consecutive victory Wednesday night for the West Seattle High School girls-varsity basketball team, 61-51 over visiting Cleveland, but it wasn’t easy. The Eagles led at the end of the first quarter, and that wasn’t their only lead of the game.

Three double-digit scorers helped bring in the win, though – #11 Jasmine Gayles and #32 Meghan Fiso each tallied 16 points.

#20 Grace Sarver had 15.

And the Wildcats kept fighting, with intense defense winning the day in the second half.

The win leaves the West Seattle girls undefeated in the Metro League, with one regular-season game to go – another home game, 7 pm Friday night vs. crosstown competitors from Chief Sealth International High School.

(WSB photos)

Right from the tipoff, it was a fast-moving faceoff Tuesday night for the boys-varsity teams of West Seattle High School and visiting Cleveland High School. The first minute alone contained two fouls and a jump ball. But the Eagles’ swarming defense and more-robust rebounding led them to the win, 66-53.

Cleveland forced WSHS into more outside shooting – the first Wildcat basket was a three-pointer, two minutes into the game, part of a short stretch in which the lead see-sawed before Cleveland started pulling further ahead toward the end of the first quarter. During the lead-swapping stretch, #2 Elijah Nnanabu had a memorable shot – a backhanded layup midway through the first quarter. He had nine points on the night:

9 was also the tally for #10 Roman Barnet, but the Wildcats’ top scorer was #5 Abdullahi Mohamed, with 13.

#23 Anthony Giomi had 8 for West Seattle, including two back-to-back baskets toward the game’s end, as the Wildcats worked on a comeback.

But throughout most of the game, the Eagles let little go unanswered, and kept up intense pressure, forcing turnovers they mostly managed to convert. The Wildcats’ fans, however, kept cheering them on – at one point as Cleveland built on their lead mid-second quarter, West Seattle battled for a basket and foul shot that led to big cheers as the Eagles’ lead was trimmed to 10. But Cleveland fought on and built to a 43-22 halftime lead.

Opening the second half, West Seattle kept pace, but wasn’t able to chip away at Cleveland’s edge, with the third quarter ending 57-38. The Wildcats’ fourth-quarter comeback started a few minutes too late.

Head coach Keffrey Fazio and his team are home again on Friday night for the final game of the regular season, vs. cross-town competitors Chief Sealth IHS (4 pm girls’ JV, 5:30 pm boys’ JV, 7 pm girls’ varsity, 8:30 pm boys’ varsity).

It’s the final week of the regular season for high-school basketball. The Chief Sealth International High School boys were on the road at Ballard HS tonight and left with the win, 65-41. Per the box score, Sadique Calloway led all scoring with 13 points, followed by Javaun Jones and Tyrell Moore with 10 each. Friday night, the Seahawks are at West Seattle High School to face the Wildcats (who played at home tonight – our coverage of that game is up next).

Last scheduled home game of the season last night for the Chief Sealth International High School girls-varsity basketball team, and that meant it was Senior Night.

The visiting Seattle Prep girls went away with the win, 71-47. But smiles were bright before the game as the seniors were honored – including #11 Aundra Tuchscherer:

And #2 Jasmine Smith:

While the Seahawks are on the road for their final three regular-season games, they’re not far away for the February 2nd finale, 7 pm at West Seattle HS.

The West Seattle High School girls-varsity basketball team remains undefeated in conference play after another win last night – 59-50 over visiting Roosevelt.

Head coach Darnell Taylor and his team have three more regular-season games – Friday night at Rainier Beach, then back home next Wednesday against Cleveland and February 2nd against Sealth.