Even shorthanded, a rested and motivated Clark College men’s basketball team had too much firepower for the Tacoma Titans on Saturday in a Northwest Athletic Conference playoff game at the O’Connell Sports Center.
The Penguins took charge in the opening minutes and never trailed in a 92-72 win that earns them a spot in the eight-team NWAC Championship Tournament.
The tournament takes place March 11-13 at Everett Community College. Clark (22-7) will shoot to repeat as NWAC champions starting with a quarterfinal game against Yakima Valley (16-13) at 8 p.m. on Friday.
The eight players available for Clark on Saturday all scored at least six points as the home team was able to keep Tacoma on its heels by sharing the basketball and by knocking down 12 3-pointers. David Baze came off the bench to score a team-high 21 points for the Penguins, who had six players reach double figures.
The South region champion Penguins lost their final two regular season games and three of their previous four. But from the start on Saturday it was clear they were dialed in.
Glenn Baral hit a pair of 3-pointers as Clark built a 14-2 lead with baskets from four of its five starters.
“We run a drive-and-kick offense. It makes the defense work a little harder to guard us,” sophomore Darrius Mathis said. “And everybody gets a chance to touch the ball and get a feel for the game.”
Clark coach Alex Kirk said his goal heading into the game was to rejuvenate his shooters.
“Playing a tough schedule takes it out of you,” Kirk said, calling the South a difficult region to win this season. “We went through a stretch there where we weren’t hitting shots. This week was about managing our rest and getting the guys off their feet so they’d have their legs. That showed tonight. We came out with energy that we haven’t had in the last two weeks.”
Clark hit 51 percent of its shots, including 12 of 28 3-pointers.
Union High graduate Micah Paulson, the only freshman in the lineup and the only Clark County player on the team, made three 3s for his nine points and also had five assists.
“A lot of the time we get off to a quick start rather than a fast start, meaning that we shoot quick shots, have quick turnovers and kind of waste possessions,” Paulson said. “So we wanted to make sure we came out tonight and made the most of those first couple minutes.”
The quick start helped Clark build a 17-point halftime lead. Tacoma was never closer than 12 points in the second half and the Penguins led by as many as 28 points.
Mathis finished with 12 points, six assists and three steals. Devon Hawkins contributed 13 points and seven rebounds. Baral finished with 10 points and seven rebounds. Bryan Berg, the team’s top scorer on the season, had 11 points, four steals, two assists and a blocked shot. Aubrey Stephens had 10 points and four assists.
For Tacoma, Abraham Ferrell-Logan had 25 points and 12 rebounds.
Among the missing players for Clark was 6-foot-10 post Miles Martin with a sore back. Kirk said he is hopeful that Martin will be able to play next weekend.
The recipe for success in Everett?
“Same thing we did tonight but to a higher level and we’ll get the job done,” Mathis said.
