Freshman Erin Hamilton scored 13 of her 30 points in the fourth quarter and Shelby Kassuba had 17 points and 17 rebounds to pace the BC women’s basketball team to an 81-76 victory over Clackamas on Saturday at the Courter Family Athletic Pavilion in the regionals of the NWAC Tournament, while the BC men saw their improbable late-season run end with an 84-76 loss to top-ranked Big Bend.
Bellevue (23-5), the No. 2 seed in the North Region, will face Wenatchee Valley (25-5) on Thursday, March 10 at 2 p.m. in the quarterfinals at Everett Community College. Wenatchee Valley, the No. 1 seed in the East Region, advanced with a 72-36 victory over South Puget Sound on Saturday.
The Bulldogs led 62-60 entering the fourth quarter and extended it to 70-64 as Hamilton scored the first eight points of the quarter for BC. Clackamas rallied to tie it at 72-72 on a 3-pointer with 3:50 remaining. On the ensuing possession, Kassuba banked home a shot down low to put the Bulldogs up 74-72. With 1:08 remaining, Hamilton was fouled on a layin and converted the free throw to make it 77-72. The Cougars missed a pair of three-point attempts in the closing minute and the Bulldogs put the game away with four final free throws.
Hamilton was 11-of-20 from the field and 8-of-8 from the free-throw line, and also pulled down 10 rebounds. Mikayla Jones added 10 points and dished out a team-high 7 assists. The Bulldogs outrebounded Clackamas 48-35, including 24 offensive boards which led to 21 second-chance points.
“She came to play. We talked to her probably about two weeks, that for us to win ballgames, she had to step up and start shooting the ball,” Bellevue coach Mel Stubblefield said of Hamilton. “Defensively, we didn’t play all that well. Offensively, to have her have the game she had, as well as Shelby had a 17 and 17 night as well. Those are our two bigs.”
Jo Paine, who played in 30 games for Division I Santa Clara as a freshman, led the Cougars with 22 points. Mary Hutchins added 17 points, including 4-of-6 from three-point range.
The BC men, who clawed their way into the playoffs after an 0-6 start to league play, battled on the road against Big Bend, the top-ranked team in the NWAC Alaska Airlines Men’s Basketball Coaches Poll.
The Bulldogs, who trailed 36-31 at the half, had 29 field goals to 24 for Big Bend, as both teams shot 48 percent. But, the Runnin’ Vikes (24-7), the No. 1 seed in the East Region, went to the free-throw line 35 times, making 26, compared to 10-of-18 for BC, the No. 4 seed in the North Region.
Jordan Muir-Kueng led the Bulldogs (16-14) with 25 points and 10 rebounds, while Yonathan Michael added 18 points and Jack Walton added 16 points.
More Photos – BC vs. Clackamas
BC Men’s Basketball
BC Women’s Basketball
Last Updated March 8, 2016
