Taking care of business

Moses Lake rolls past Wenatchee to grab a playoff spot

MOSES LAKE — Moses Lake had two chances Tuesday to get into the playoffs - a win over Wenatchee, or a Southridge loss to Davis.

Moses Lake chose to win. The Chiefs opened up the first quarter with an 8-0 run and never looked back, solidifying its spot in the Big Nine District tournament with a 59-44 win over the Panthers.

The Chiefs' performance was exactly what Moses Lake head coach Brant Mayo wanted.

"We never want to back in because you are never on a role," Mayo said. "We have been playing well mostly, we had the step back against Richland, but for the most part, we have been playing really well."

Moses Lake was picked to finish ninth in the Big Nine and Mayo said his group of seniors on the team weren't expected to accomplish much. The advancement to the postseason pushed the Chiefs' streak to five straight playoff appearances.

"We were at a point in the season where it could have gone either way and we won the games we needed to win and won a few we shouldn't have won," Mayo added.

Quinn Baker opened the game with an off-balance shot away from the basket, then got to the free-throw line to convert 1-of-2 from the line for Moses Lake's first three points. Brendan Ware followed with a 3-pointer, then drove to the basket for a layup with 4:25 left in the first quarter, forcing the Panthers into a timeout trailing 8-0.

Geoff Bailey scored the first Wenatchee points coming out of the timeout, but Mitch Roylance cushioned the early lead with a 3-pointer of his own. The Chiefs finished the first quarter with a 19-8 lead over Wenatchee.

The second quarter slowed down for both sides and Moses Lake's full court pressure defense handicapped the Panthers from getting back into the game.

Patrick Anderson scored back-to-back baskets for the Chiefs, which turned out to the sole offense for the first 6:27 of the quarter. Daniel Dalton scored a basket after a Moses Lake timeout and Roylance picked up a steal and scored to extend the Chiefs' lead to 27-12.

Bailey scored late in the second quarter to send the Panthers into halftime trailing Moses Lake 27-14.

Moses Lake opened the second half on a 10-4 run for its biggest lead of the game. The Panthers pulled within 13 in the fourth quarter, but Moses Lake never gave in, holding on for the 59-44 win.

The Chiefs held Wenatchee to 19-of-55 shooting and forced 17 turnovers, to which Moses Lake scored 17 points.

Moses Lake can do no better than fifth place in the Big Nine and no worse than sixth. The Chiefs face Kamiakin on Friday, who clinched the other final playoff spot.

"We need to get some confidence on the road," Mayo said. We don't want to back into the playoffs, we want to go in rolling and there is no better way to do that than get a win against a playoff team."