By Micheal Rios, Tulalip News
Opening Round vs. Grace
The (16-4) Heritage Hawks entered the District 1B playoffs as the #2 seed. After a chaotic regular season that saw multiple game postponements and a rash of injuries that sidelined several players, the coaching staff is hopeful the turbulence is finally behind them. Leaving nothing but smooth sailing as they hope to peak in the playoffs.
“Between the weather and flooding in December and the players we had in and out of the lineup due to injuries, the first half the season was chaotic, to say the least,” shared head coach Shawn Sanchey. “We finally have a roster at full health and have been able to get our reps in at practice. I feel like we’re just now getting into our flow. We want to keep that momentum going now that it’s playoff time, and hopefully everything will peak for us as we officially begin our march to State.”
Their opening round opponent was Grace Academy. The game was played at Francy J. Sheldon gymnasium on Thursday, February 5.
From the opening tip it was all Hawks, all the time. Offensively, seven Hawks scored in the 1st quarter. Everyone being a willing passer and giving up a good shot for a great one made it impossible for Grace Academy to play effective defense. Heritage jumped out to a 22-6 lead, which they extended to 52-12 at halftime.
Sophomore shooting guard Tayari Archibald led all scorers at halftime with 13 points. He had the home crowd oohing and awing with his long-range shooting. He even splashed a 3-pointer from well behind the arc, nearly Steph Curry range, right before intermission.
“I didn’t even know I was that far back, to be honest,” said Yari. “I was feeling good against their zone and knew I could get my shot anytime because they’re slow to recover.”
The sophomore shooter remained hot in the second half and went on to lead his team with 20 points, including four made 3-pointers, in a 102-24 route of Grace Academy. It’s worth noting that all eleven varsity boys scored a bucket in the game and six players scored in double figures.
Second Round vs. Darrington
After picking up their first playoff win and 17th overall W of the year, the Heritage Hawks earned the right to host another home game. This time it was against Darrington. Game played on Saturday, February 7.
In the early going, it appeared Heritage would get some actual competition. Darrington connected on their first two 3-point attempts and held a 6-4 lead. That lead would be short-lived. Unlike the last game, where Heritage thrived from behind the 3-point line, this game they found great success attacking the basket. One Hawk after another got into the painted area and found themselves with an uncontested basket. Of their 11 made field goals in the opening quarter, 10 were 2-pointers. Tulalip was up 22-9 after one.
Meanwhile, Heritage’s man defense was wreaking havoc on Darrington’s ballhandlers all night long. Steal after steal resulted in uncontested, fast break points for the Hawks. Tulalip went up by 20 points midway through the 2nd quarter, 33-13, when Darrington called a timeout.
Even after the timeout, Darrington was unable to execute their plays vs. the speedy hands of Hawks defenders who routinely anticipated the pass before it was made. With their defense igniting the offense, and the boys remaining in attack mode, Heritage took a commanding 49-16 lead into halftime.
Junior guard J.J. Gray led all scorers at halftime with 13 points. As the shortest player on the team, his buckets seemed to be the loudest. With a full head of steam, he penetrated the heart of Darrington’s defense at will. More often than not, he’d convert an acrobatic layup just outside the reach of would-be defenders.
“I’m just playing my game,” said J.J. who is nearing his 1,000th high school point. “It’s a team game, too, so I’m sharing the ball and hitting my teammates when they are open. I know I’ll get that 1,000th point soon enough. Right now, I just want to keep stacking these wins.”
Heritage went on to dispatch Darrington with another emphatic win. This time by the score of 81-45. Sophomore Tayari again led all scorers with 22 points. Davien scored 15 points and J.J. added 14 points.
Head coach Shawn Sanchey said, “It’s been a long season. These latest wins feel like we’re nearing our peak and playing our best version of team ball. Now is the time for all the hard work to show, and if we can keep this up then we’ll be at the top of mountain, right where we want to be.”