Moses Lake takes sixth at State B Tournament

A buzzer beater from Morton seals fate for Lions

SPOKANE — The game was tied at 51 after a freethrow by the Morton Huskies.

The second freethrow bounced off the back of the rim and into the hands of a Morton player crashing the board. Morton tossed up a prayer as the buzzer sounded and defeated the Moses Lake Christian Academy 53-51.

"It was a good ride but they beat us in freethrows and rebounding," said Lions head coach Lonnie Brown. "It's been a learning experience. Now the kids know what they want and they know what it takes to get it."

The game was tight from the beginning with early scoring by both squads keeping the competition close.

Morton scored first after winning the tip off but Moses Lake came back to score on an inbounds play after a Morton foul.

Josh Munoz took the ball out on the baseline and connected with his fellow co-captain David Timofeyev for the Lions' first bucket of the night. Timofeyev earned a layup to tie the game early.

"David and Josh have set the bar for Lions basketball," said Brown. "They have worked hard all season long and gave it all they had tonight."

Munoz continued to produce offensively for Moses Lake, earning a basket of his own with a scoop shot to tie the game at four.

The Lions continued to use their speed to exploit the inbounds play after another Morton foul. This time Phillip Friehe hit a baby jump shot to give his team their first lead of the ball game.

After two quick fouls by Riggs Yarbro, Sam Walker came into the ball game for Moses Lake and committed two quick fouls of his own, the second put Morton on the line for two shots.

The Huskies went 1-for-2 and took a 7-6 lead on the next possession.

With time winding down in the first quarter, Munoz lined up beyond the arc and hit the first 3-ball of the night for Moses Lake to give the Lions the lead once again.

Daniel Timofeyev opened the second quarter with a steal and layup for Moses Lake to extend the lead to 4-points.

Morton cut the lead in half before David Timofeyev found Munoz down low for an easy bucket. Munoz scored another layup on the next trip down court with an assist from Friehe to make it 17-9.

Daniel Timofeyev earned a bucket, sinking a long jump shot for two, following a Morton foul with five minutes remaining in the half.

Moses Lake extended their lead further with Munoz earning a putback and trip to the line. Munoz converted the 3-point play to make it 22-13.

Morton then earned eight unanswered points, including two freethrows after a foul by Josiah Meiners.

The Lions went into the locker room up by just one point at halftime after leading by as many as nine.

The Huskies came out swinging in the second half and made the first basket of the third quarter to take the lead.

Daniel Timofeyev followed up the hoop with a steal and bucket of his own to give Moses Lake the lead.

Both teams continued to vie for the top score until Friehe hit a 3-point shot to give his team a two point lead. The 3-ball was followed by a steal from David Timofeyev that resulted in a missed shot for the Lions. Daniel Timofeyev then earned another steal for Moses Lake and followed it up with a layup to give the Lions a 4-point lead.

On the next drive down court, David Timofeyev found Riggs Yarbro in the paint for a layup.

Moses Lake then struggled for a minute, committing a turnover and a being charged with a foul.

Morton then committed a foul of their own and put Yarbro on the line for two. Yarbro swished them both to put his team up 35-29 with just under four minutes left in the period.

Munoz then committed a foul to put Morton on the line for two. The Huskies were able to cut the lead by two before Friehe connected with Yarbro for a layup to regain the 6-point margin for Moses Lake.

Moses Lake's Casey Hudson pushed the lead to 42-33 after hitting a 3-ball with two minutes left in the period. The Lions followed the bucket with another 3-point shot, this one from David Timofeyev.

The last eight minutes of the ball game began with a turnover by Moses Lake and a foul by Yarbro to put Morton on the line.

Morton then committed a foul of their own, putting Munoz on the line for two. Munoz went 1-for-2 to give the Lions a 12-point lead.

The Huskies answered with a 12-0 scoring run to tie the game at 46 with three minutes remaining in the game.

Friehe gave the Lions some breathing room after sinking another 3-ball. Morton was able to answer with a bucket of their own before taking a 50-49 lead on a jump shot.

The Lions answered with Yarbro finding Daniel Timofeyev on the run for a layup to regain the lead with 45 seconds left.

Yarbro committed a foul to put Morton on the line for two. Morton went 0-for-2 from the line.

Morton had one foul to give and committed two, the second put Daniel Timofeyev on the line for 1-and-1. Timofeyev was not able to convert his first shot but Daniel Timofeyev followed up the missed shot with a steal to regain possession for Moses Lake.

Morton fouled Daniel Timofeyev and put him on the line to shoot 1-and-1. Daniel Timofeyev went 0-for-1 and on the scramble for the rebound Morton gained possession after a favorable jump ball call.

With two seconds left, Munoz fouled Morton to put them on the line for two. Morton went 1-for-2 for the tie.

"It's been a great week," Brown said. "The kids have been great. They've been focused. They've done everything we've asked them to basketball-wise."

Munoz led the team in scoring with 15 points and 11 rebounds. David Timofeyev had 13 points. Friehe and Yarbro had eight points each.

Moses Lake fell into the game with Morton after losing to Northwest Christian, who went on to win the State B title, 35-31 Friday.