First-half Ritzville explosion leads to Royal defeat, 67-46

ROYAL CITY - The return of the Royal High boys to the hardwoods last Saturday was not what coach Pete Christensen had envisioned.

Ritzville, one of the top 2B programs in the state, sprinted past the Knights in the first half en route to a 67-46 victory. Ritzville, 10-2, outscored Royal, 41-23, before intermission.

"This was a buzz saw for a game," Christensen said. "I have never seen a team shoot as well as Ritzville did the first half."

Meanwhile, Royal's shooting was off the mark. The Knights connected on 17 of 58 attempts for 29 percent. They hit only 63 percent of their 11 free throws.

The Knights don't keep opponents stats, but Christensen guesses Ritzville shot 80 percent in the first half. Royal made a few adjustments at half and played Ritzville fairly evenly in the second half and worked on its offense.

"The guys fought hard the entire game," Christensen said. "We were able to work on a lot of components of our game. The second half we took control of our offensive opportunities and used that time to run through our sets."

The Knights were able to close the gap to 12 at one point, but Ritzville pulled away again. Ritzville's hot first half was too much to overcome.

Royal was led in scoring by Kent Christensen with 13 points. Reed Lefler scored 11, and Brady Dixon made 10. Dixon led in rebounds with 10. Christensen had seven and Lefler six.

The Knights pick up the action tonight at Naches. They will host Warden on Friday and travel to Kiona-Benton on Saturday.