Fun prevails at annual Roundball Shootout

It was all fun and games at the Les Schwab Roundball Shootout on Sunday until someone got gashed in the head.

And even then, it was fun.

The 20th annual high school all-star basketball series at Clark College brought old friends together as teammates and made new friends out of old rivals.

The scores really didn’t matter. But in the boys game, the White team beat the Black team 118-101. The Black team prevailed in the girls contest, 68-64.

Micah Paulson of Union was the MVP of the boys game with 30 points, 10 assists and four rebounds. But that wasn’t the best part of the night.

“One of my best friends is Robert Franks,” Paulson said of the Evergreen star. “We were teammates on our AAU team, so it was great to team up with him again and show what we can do.”

What they showed is that both players can shoot the 3-pointer, each converted six in the game as they seemingly had a contest to see who could make the longer 3-pointer.

“Aw, he didn’t give me a chance with that last one,” Paulson said of Franks’ shot from more than 30 feet away. “When he hit that, I’m like ‘Forget this. He’s got some range.’ “

Franks finished with 28 points and 10 rebounds.

“Micah and I have been playing together since seventh grade,” Franks said. “I told him before the game ‘Let’s just go out there and have some fun.’ “

For Josslyn Blackman of Battle Ground and Emily Peters of Prairie, Sunday’s showcase was a chance to play as teammates on the Black team.

“Even though one of our schools is in 3A and the other 4A, we’re still rivals because we’re from the same school district,” Peters said. “It was nice to be on the same team with her this time.”

Blackman had 18 points and 15 rebounds, while Peters added 18 points and 12 rebounds. Both players shared MVP honors with each receiving a $500 scholarship.

Blackman also beat out Peters to win the 3-point shooting contest at halftime.

“It was fun to get back on the basketball court,” Blackman said. “It’s been like a month since my season ended, so it was fun to play again with all these great players and make new friends.”

King’s Way Christian’s Cole Jensen buried some early 3-pointers in the boys game before play was stopped because blood was streaking down his cheek from a cut just above his left temple.

Jensen left the game to get the cut bandaged. He returned at halftime to take part in the 3-point shooting, nailing 21 3-pointers in a minute to win the contest.

But the effort caused his cut to bleed again, and he left the gym to get it treated. When he returned in the second half, he had a new bandage held in place by a black-and-white headband.

As he went back into the game, he was announced as “Rocky Balboa,” drawing a smile from the King’s Way senior.

Other highlights from Sunday:

• Camas’ Nikki Corbett had 15 points and eight rebounds for the White team in the girls game. Lindsay Asplund of Prairie had 14 points and six rebounds.

• Battle Ground’s Devin Johnson made it a big day for Battle Ground players, beating out Skyview’s Marcus Lord to win the slam dunk competition.

• La Center’s Will Rice also hit six 3-pointers for the White team in the boys game, finishing with 21 points.

• Camas’ Trevor Jasinsky led the Black team with 30 points, while Columbia River’s Nate Hawthorne added 16.

BOYS: WHITE 118, BLACK 101

BLACK — Nate Hawthorne 16, Cole Jensen 6, Yorro Bah 2, Mark Bejan 8, Jordan Suell 11, Trevor Jasinsky 30, Jordan Henderson 12, Devin Johnson 13. Totals 43-96 (10-34) 5-6 101.

WHITE — Nate Morning 5, Micah Paulson 30, Jordan Anderson 13, Noah Prangley 13, Will Rice 21, Kenese Penueta 0, Marcus Lord 8, Robert Franks 28, JD Wolniewicz 0. Totals 41-88 (22-45) 14-16 118.

Halftime — White 55-45

GIRLS: BLACK 68, WHITE 64

BLACK — Yimei Kerr 4, Katie Whitten 5, Hannahjoy Adams 11, Katharine Williams 2, Anna Pentilla 0, Emily Peters 18, Jamie Phares 6, Josslyn Blackman 18, Jo Washington 4. Totals 26-61 (8-19) 8-21. 68

WHITE — Sidra Malik 6, Lindsay Asplund 14, Marion Lilly 6, Megan Bloom 6, Grace Davis 9, Sydnie Cole-Vogler 2, Genevieve Lo 4, Nikki Corbett 15, McKenna Mulder 2. Totals 27-72 (5-16) 5-16 64.

Halftime — Black 32-30.