Braves miss shot at Spokane hoops bracket

Despite a 10 a.m. tipoff, the clock struck midnight on the Cinderella La Conner Braves in Auburn Saturday.

The No. 10 Chief Leschi Warriors clinched a berth at the Spokane Arena this week by defeating 15th seeded La Conner 68-41 in a loser-out state regional matchup.

The Braves, who had upset bi-district favorites Auburn Adventist and Coupeville the week before, fell to a talented Chief Leschi team that controlled tempo throughout with a stifling full-court press, crisp transition game and superb three-point shooting.

Much of the damage was done by Warriors guard Brandon Brown, who had 18 points at halftime and was perfect on four perimeter trey attempts before intermission. Brown, at that juncture, had almost matched his season scoring average of 20.8 points per game.

By contrast, La Conner scoring leaders Braden Thomas and Isaiah Price had limited touches in the first half due to Chief Leschi's pressure defense which produced several transition baskets in the backcourt.

Thomas and Price fared better in the second half, but by then the outcome was no longer in doubt.

Price opened the third quarter with a deft finger-roll in traffic and Thomas scored on a pair of putbacks and a three-pointer. Yet La Conner was unable to cut into the deficit.

Chief Leschi went up 58-26 on a Gaston Dillon three-ball,

La Conner countered with an inside score by Tyler Cicotte, a layup and jumper from Price and the second of two treys by Corran Eisen.

Still, the Warriors enjoyed a steady 25–30-point advantage in the final stanza. Another Dillon trey put Chief Leschi up 65-35. Thomas and Price combined for six points in the late going to trim the final margin to 68-41.

La Conner, though having to roll out of town at 6 a.m. to make the mid-morning state regional playoff date – a game that had originally been scheduled to start at noon – began well enough.

The Braves trailed just 12-7 midway through the first quarter before Chief Leschi went on an 11-1 run to close out the frame. The Warrior spurt was ignited by a breakaway run-out score from Justin James. From there, Chief Leschi never looked back.

The victors, fueled by scores off turnovers and mastery of the trey arc, took a commanding 44-15 advantage at the break.

For head coach C.J. Woods' charges, who wrapped up the '22-23 campaign with an 11-13 mark, it was a tough season finale after having upended Auburn Adventist and Coupeville – winning the latter game courtesy two last second Thomas free throws on the Wolves' court – to capture the Northwest Bi-District title.

Chief Leschi (21-4) advances to the State 2B Hardwood Classic round of 12 in Spokane today opposite No. 7 Northwest Christian of Colbert. The two meet at 10:30 a.m. in another loser-out contest. The winner plays top-seeded Davenport in the state quarterfinals tomorrow at the Spokane Arena.