Mountain View seniors Andrew White and Lucas Swanson did everything they could to help send the Thunder to the state tournament.
The trigger-quick White drained 3-pointers after stop-and-pop moves, while Swanson glided down the court and sank baskets in a manner that disguised his muscular, bulky frame.
But the combination of White and Swanson’s talent with the Thunder’s will was not enough on Saturday evening.
Mountain View fell to Eastlake of Sammamish 88-60 in a Class 4A state bi-district boys basketball playoff game.
Eastlake advanced to the 4A state playoffs next week in Tacoma. The Thunder’s season came to an end.
“It’s disappointing to get beat like this,” Mountain View coach Mike Cranston said. “But I’m proud of the way we played Ñ nobody gave up.”
For the Thunder, the tough loss followed a program-changing win over Skyview on Thursday for the 4A District 4 title. It was Mountain View’s first district title during Cranston’s 18 years coaching the team.
White scored a team-high 17 points for Mountain View (12-9), while Swanson added 15.
Michael Russo poured in a game-high 24 points for the Wolves (14-7).
“We did a great job tonight,” Russo said. “We’ve very excited to be going to state.”
Down 10-7 early in the first quarter, Mountain View watched Eastlake take control of the game via a 22-2 run.
The Wolves’ full-court pressure defense immediately gave the Thunder fits. Ill-advised passes, incomplete offensive sets and an inability to slow the contest down and stay in the moment all contributed to a flood of early turnovers.
Cranston said his team knew Eastlake would bring heavy pressure. But being aware of an impending attack and facing it during a game-time environment is two completely different things.
“We’d been in a groove for about five to six games, playing a certain style,” Cranston said. “We had not seen that type of defense in a long time.”
Mountain View was unable to gain ground in the second quarter. A brief volley of points from Swanson and Aaron Blevins aided the Thunder, but Eastlake continued to pound away.
And every time Mountain View made a charge, the Wolves hit back harder. Eastlake used a motion-heavy offense that prized speed over power, and open shooters did not go long without the ball in their hands.
The Wolves took a 48-23 lead into halftime.
“That’s really our game plan,” Russo said. “We just move the ball and push it up the court.”
But for all their struggles in the first half, Mountain View found the energy to roar out of the break.
White bombed away with two quick 3s. And a fast-break layup by Swanson pulled the Thunder within 56-39 with 2 minutes, 30 seconds left in the third quarter.
The flurry barely made a dent, though.
Eastlake led by 21 after the third quarter. And the Wolves stretched their advantage to 79-51 with 3:44 to go.
Still, Swanson said he was proud to represent the Thunder. He referenced going from the back gym to the front gym during his four years at Mountain View. And he watched his team go from under the radar to playing in front of a gym packed with fans, cameras and lights.
“But it all goes so fast,” Swanson said.
Big run: Eastlake used a 22-2 burst that stretched from the early first quarter until the second period to take control of the game.
Big player: Mountain ViewÕs Andrew White scored a team-high 17 points.
