Lions fend off Cougars in tourney

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Christian Academy (MLCA) boys basketball team capitalized on 23 points from senior Riggs Yarbro as the Lions were able to fend off the Warden Cougars 55-47 in the first round of the MLCA Christmas Tournament Monday night.

Both teams got off to a slow start, beginning the game scoreless through the first two minutes before Warden took a 2-0 advantage.

Moses Lake Christian  responded on their next possession when senior guard Adrian Moffet sank a 3-point shot to give the Lions a 3-2 lead.

The Lions continued to build on their early lead as Moses Lake Christian jumped out to a 12-6 first quarter advantage.

Moses Lake Christian continued to distance themselves from Warden in the second quarter as the Lions took a 28-20 lead into the half.

With the Lions holding an 8-point edge, the Cougars responded after the break.

Warden mounted a second-half comeback thanks to Nathan Brown.

Brown led the Warden offense with 16 points as the Cougars rallied in the third quarter to pull even with Moses Lake Christian. 

Warden head coach Wes Richins said he was happy to see his team fight back in the second half.

“I’m glad we came out in the second half, battled back and tied it,” he said. “They went on a little run, we just couldn’t answer.”

Although the Cougars tied the game in the third quarter, Moses Lake Christian was able to pull away in the fourth quarter to earn the win.

Despite the victory, Moses Lake head coach Lonnie Brown said he was disappointed with his team’s second-half execution.

“The second half we just weren’t flowing,” he said. “The second half seemed a little sluggish.”

The Lions would be too much for the Cougars down the stretch as Moses Lake Christian knocked off Warden 55-47 to advance to Tuesday night’s championship game with Tri-Cities Prep at 7:30 p.m.

Following the loss, Richins said his team did not play as well as he had hoped following the break.

“We didn’t look too sharp,” he said. “I didn’t think we had the intensity tonight to beat these guys. We look like we haven’t played in a couple of weeks.”

Although his team came away with the victory, Yarbro said his team needs to play better basketball.

“Hopefully we will learn not to foul so much and take better shots,” he said.

Despite playing poorly, Yarbro said he and his teammates will learn from Monday night’s win.

“It was a rough win,” he said. “It was a good win for us because we learned to play through adversity.”

Warden will play Bridgeport this afternoon in the consolation bracket for third place. The opening tip off is scheduled for 4:30 p.m.