YAKIMA – It just wouldn’t feel like a 1A state basketball tournament if Lynden Christian and King’s didn’t meet in an extremely important game. This year it was the state semifinals, and it was the Lyncs who won 63-54 in the longtime rivalry between the two stalwarts.
Lynden Christian exploded to a 7-0 lead, but the Knights wouldn’t be held down for long as they went on a 19-3 run in the first half and held a strong 32-25 lead at the half.
A low-scoring third quarter by both teams ended with an onslaught of buckets to finish the period.
Junior guard Dawson Hintz tied it up with a close-range shot, and junior guard Gunnar Dykstra gave the Lyncs the lead with a running banker on the left side of the key.
Shortly thereafter, junior forward Kaden Veldman tipped in a shot, and a reverse layup by senior forward Boyce Robertson soon followed, and LC had a 42-39 lead going into the final quarter.
Hintz went on to score the first eight LC points of the quarter, but the long-range shooting of the Knights kept them in the game.
A three-pointer by King’s cut the Lync lead to 50-47, but it was soon answered by Robertson who hit a corner three much to the delight of the hundreds of Lynden Christian fans in attendance.
Another three-pointer by Robertson a few minutes later gave the Lyncs a 58-49 lead, and LC held on relatively comfortably from there on out.
Hintz finished with 24 points, five rebounds and four assists.
Robertson, Dykstra and Veldman all went on to score 12 points each, and Robertson also grabbed a team-high 12 rebounds. Veldman also finished with nine boards and six blocked shots.
Lynden Christian will battle Zillah tomorrow at 7:00 for the 1A state championship.
Lynden Christian 63, King's 54 KI 14 18 7 15 - 54 LC 16 9 17 21 - 63
King's: N/A. Lynden Christian: Hintz 24, Dykstra 12, Howell 0, Maberry 0, Kamphouse 3, Ridnour 0, Robertson 12, Veldman 12, Herwerden 0.
