Braves upset Coupeville to earn state berth

Turnabout is fair play.

After having lost two tense games to conference hoops foe Coupeville – one on a desperate three-point buzzer beater – the underdog La Conner Braves avenged themselves with a dramatic 63-61 triumph Thursday, securing an improbable bi-district title and state tournament berth.

La Conner, seeded 15th out of 16 state entries, faces No. 10 Chief Leschi this weekend in a loser-out contest. The winner advances to the state 2B Hardwood Classic round of 12 March 1 at the Spokane Arena opposite either Northwest Christian of Colbert or Morton-White Pass.

But, for now, head coach C.J. Woods' charges can enjoy having defied the odds and qualified for the big dance.

Senior transfer Braden Thomas, whose mid-season arrival sparked a Braves resurgence, calmly sank two free throws with four-tenths of a second left to play, completing a stunning win over the host Wolves.

Thomas had been fouled amid confusion over whether a long jumper by Coupeville's Logan Downes was a two-pointer or perimeter trey. Officials ruled the shot a three-pointer, which tied the score at 61-61, with just two seconds remaining.

But mistakenly thinking the bucket came inside the trey arc, which would have Coupeville trailing 61-60, a Wolves player fouled Thomas to stop the clock after he received the ensuing in-bounds pass. He was awarded two free throws as the team was in the double bonus.

It was a crazy finish to a game during which La Conner trailed much of the way.

The Braves trailed 9-2 early. They then reeled off a 14-7 run to pull even at 16-16 after the first period, fueled by three pointers from Thomas, Ivory Damien and Brayden Pedroza.

Coupeville controlled the second quarter, but two free throws by Thomas pulled the visitors within 31-27 at the break.

The Wolves extended their lead to 40-32 in the third quarter on a layup by Downes, who led all scorers with 26 points.

But back came La Conner.

Isaiah Price scored on a layup on a nice feed from Damien and followed with a pair of charity tosses to narrow the count. C.J. Edwards cut the Wolves lead to 40-38 going into the final stanza with a driving layup in traffic.

The Braves, who drained eight three-pointers, continued to do damage from long range in the pivotal fourth quarter.

Two treys by Damien and a three-pointer from Price lifted La Conner on top 50-46 midway through the frame. The lead swelled to 53-48 after Price reeled in an offensive board and fed Thomas for yet another La Conner three-ball.

The Braves were up 56-50 at the 2 minute mark following an inside hoop and free throw by Thomas.

Coupeville kept within striking distance: La Conner missed four straight foul shots. A Downes layup pulled the Wolves closer, at 60-58, with 10 seconds on the clock.

Thomas was fouled when La Conner inbounded the ball in backcourt. He converted one of two freebies for a 61-58 led with 9 seconds remaining. Downes then pushed the ball up the floor and delivered the tying three-point bucket.

Damien was four-of-seven on three-pointers and led the team with 19 points. Thomas finished with 18. Price recorded a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds, while Pedroza chipped in 10 points, including a pair of treys.

Edwards rounded out the attack with two points.

The Braves shot at a 44 per cent clip (18 of 41) from the floor, were eight of 19 on three-point attempts and 19 of 30 (63 per cent) from the foul stripe.

Coupeville (14-8) saw its state hopes dashed in a 64-53 home loss to Auburn Adventist Saturday.

La Conner had defeated Auburn 57-53 in first round bi-district play.

The team advances to state action with a somewhat misleading 11-12 slate as they played six games before Thomas' debut and four of the team's losses were to larger enrollment non-league opponents.