The Wildcats nearly survived a cold-shooting second half, but were eliminated from the 1A district tournament went a late shot did not fall for them.
Jake Wise had 19 points and 14 rebounds for La Center.
“Jake was a beast,” La Center coach Jeremy Ecklund said. “They didn’t have an answer for him. He was tough tonight.”
The Wildcats hit four 3-pointers in the second quarter to take a 32-23 lead at half. But they didn’t hit another the rest of the game.
Still, La Center managed to stay ahead until the Cruisers took their first lead at 51-49 with 12 seconds to play.
The Wildcats got a couple of chances at a tying basket but couldn’t get it.
“We had a lot of challenges with injuries this year,” Ecklund said. “I think our school could have invested in some ankle braces with matching colors because we had a lot of ankle injuries. But even with different lineups every night, our game came to play. You can’t fault their heart.”
EATONVILLE 51, LA CENTER 49
EATONVILLE — Justin Brandt 4, Tristan Schoepf 3, Ray Springer 6, Jakob Wolfe 0, Wyatt Layman 4, Derick York 8, Brooks Moeller 8, Carson Hutchings 18. Totals 21 (6) 3-8 51.
LA CENTER (12-11) — Sawyer Bierscheid 8, Matt Baher 3, Jake Wise 19, Brody Seter 5, Jackson Leslie 5, Jon Eastman 2, Dalton Morgan 7. Totals 19 (4) 7-14 49.
