Lions claw way to title

MOSES LAKE — Although the Moses Lake Christian Academy Lions didn’t earn their first lead until there were four minutes left in regulation, the Lions rallied to force overtime and ultimately claim the MLCA Christmas Tournament basketball title with a 64-58 win over Tri-Cities Prep.

The Lions fell behind early when the Jaguars clawed their way onto the scoreboard first for a 2-0 lead on their way to a 13-9 first quarter advantage.

Tri-Cities Prep continued to distance themselves from Moses Lake Christian as the Jaguars built a 29-16 lead with less than three minutes to play in the half.

The game and the championship appeared to be slipping away from Moses Lake Christian in before seniors Riggs Yarbro and Adrian Moffet led the Lions on a 10-0 run to close out the half and pull within three points at 29-26.

Moses Lake Christian struggled from the floor in the first half, shooting only 10-of-24 from the field.

The Lions got off to a slow start and Moses Lake Christian head coach Lonnie Brown said Yarbro helped keep his team in the game.

“In the first half (Riggs Yarbro) was the only thing happening for us,” he said. “He kept us around.”

Yarbro finished the night with 29 points and 11 rebounds to record the double-double.

The Jaguars were able to add to their lead in the third quarter to take a 41-37 advantage.

Moses Lake Christian battled back in the fourth quarter when Moffet hit a pair of 3-pointers down the stretch as the Lions would erase the deficit and build a lead of their own with four minutes left in the game.

The Lions continued to battle down the stretch as Moses Lake Christian took a 56-54 lead in front of the home crowd with a minute to play.

With time winding down on the game, a costly foul with 9.2 seconds left sent Will Hoppes to the line for the Jaguars.

Hoppes sank both free throws to tie the game and send the championship game into overtime.

“We have a little motto that you have to play 32 minutes,” Brown said. “I told them tonight they had to play 36.”

The Jaguars drew first blood in overtime when to take a 56-58 lead before Moffet scored to tie the game 58-58. The Lions defense began to take over as they forced a Jaguars turnover.

“I told them we needed to win a four-minute game,” Brown said of the overtime period. “It has to be done on the defensive end. You have to get stops.”

As the Lions attacked the basket on the ensuing possession, Yarbro was fouled and sent to the free-throw line. The senior sank both of his attempts as the Lions took a 60-58 lead.

The Lions forced another turnover on the Jaguars’ next possession and a Tri-Cities Prep foul sent senior Tim Gjefle to the line.

Gjefle made his first attempt but his second one clanked off the rim into the hands of Yarbro who put the ball in the basket for a 63-58 Moses Lake Christian advantage.

As Yarbro’s shot fell through the twine, the Moses Lake Christian crowd erupted.

“We finally got our crowd to stand up and cheer,” Brown said. “I told them … it was OK for them to get up and yell.”

After the win, Brown said it was satisfying to win the championship on Moses Lake Christian’s home court.

“We got her done,” he said. “It was hard-fought.”