Moses Lake weathers OT against Rams

by Pam Riobel<br>Herald Sports Editor
| December 18, 2006 8:00 PM

Chiefs sweep weekend competition

MOSES LAKE — With less than two minutes to go in the game Cody Meeks hit a 3-ball to put the Chiefs up by three against West Valley Saturday.

The Rams answered with a 3-pointer of their own and tried to sink a last second shot to end the game. The shot did not fall and the game went into overtime.

"I thought we did a good job in overtime," said Moses Lake head coach Brant Mayo. "Overall, I was pretty happy with the second half."

Moses Lake won the overtime tip-off but was not able to take advantage of the possession.

West Valley struck first, on a 1-for-2 trip to the line to take a 56-55 lead.

The lead was short-lived as Meeks earned a putback for the Chiefs and had his bucket followed by a layup by Ben Waites from Quinn Baker to give Moses Lake a 3-point advantage.

After a Moses Lake turnover the Rams put up a tough shot that was rebounded by the Chiefs' Josh Loera.

To stop the clock, West Valley fouled and sent Meeks to the line. Meeks went 2-for-2 to extend the Moses Lake lead to seven. The Rams went for another quick foul, putting Loera on the line, who went 2-for-2 as well.

West Valley chipped into the lead with a 1-for-2 trip to the line after Meeks committed his fifth foul of the game and headed to the bench.

Two more Chiefs shooters were sent to the line — Baker who went 1-for-2 and Seth Bruneel who missed both of his attempts — in the closing minutes of overtime.

West Valley scored the final field goal for either team but it was not enough to close the gap and after a final trip to the foul line for Moses Lake, a 2-for-2 stint by Loera, the Chiefs earned a 66-59 win over the Rams.

"It was an ugly win. We haven't had one of those in a while," Mayo said.

Moses Lake opened the game with a 6-0 scoring run after West Valley scored the first basket of the night. The Rams made up some ground to take the lead with two minutes left in the opening period but saw the lead disappear when Jared Walker drained a three from the baseline to make it 9-7.

West Valley took advantage of a Chiefs' turnover to regain the lead but could not hold onto it, fouling Meeks who earned the bucket but missed his free throw. Baker ended the first quarter with a 1-for-2 trip to the line for Moses Lake, giving the Chiefs a 2-point lead.

Both teams started out the second quarter with foul and turnover trouble, the sloppy streak was snapped when Loera found BJ Guerra in the paint for a layup and then found him again a few trips down court later.

Then it was Meeks' turn to pressure the Rams with a steal and layup to give the Chiefs an 18-12 lead.

"Cody Meeks played well. So did Ben Waites and Casey Seacrist. It was really a team effort," Mayo said.

Baker connected with Loera for a layup, tying the game at 23, on a West Valley turnover for the final field goal of the half. After the half ended West Valley was charged with a technical foul that was carried over into the second half.

Each team continued to battle tough, exchanging leads and ties through most of third period.

Meeks led the team with 20 points and six rebounds. Loera had 14 points and five assists. Baker earned 12 points and seven boards.

Moses Lake's win over West Valley made it a weekend sweep after defeating Hanford Friday. Baker led the team in that game with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Loera added 13 points and Tyson Garcia earned 11 points.

"From the outset, it was a great team effort," said Mayo. "I'm pretty proud of the effort in both games."