Royal boys win twice
Cascade defense zeros in on the driving Kaden Jenks and he crosses with a pass.
ROYAL CITY — Things are turning around for the Royal High boys basketball team. The Knights won twice last week and moved into second place in SCAC East.
The more significant win was the second one. Coach Pete Christensen decided to let his boys run with the ball, and they ran River View right out of the gym, 75-55.
“That seems to be what they want to do,” Christensen said. “It was a fast-paced game that is becoming apparent that our kids enjoy playing.”
The victory left Royal with a 2-1 record in the SCAC East, good for second place. The Knights will have three chances to solidify that position this week. They will travel to Burbank tonight and will host Kiona-Benton on Friday and Wahluke on Saturday.
The Knights had five players in double figures and seven scored all together. Corbin Christensen led with 17 points, Kaden Jenks and Isaac Ellis had 14 each, Owen Ellis scored 12, and Carson Gilbert got 11. The team had its best shooting of the season with 37 percent.
The Knights outscored River View in every quarter, including a 26-13 fourth period. They committed 10 turnovers but had 10 steals.
“Our shooting is coming along but the defense is jelling together much quicker than anticipated,” Christensen said. “We made a lot of changes this week that have paid off big. Our kids are finding and most importantly feeling success and ownership of this style of game.
“There are still a lot of good things to come. We, the coaches, are excited to watch as we continue to develop as a team within this system.”
The first win last week was in a non-league contest. Royal rallied, 23-19, in the fourth period to win 51-49.
“It was a touch and go game,” Christensen said. “We implemented a few new things that work well for the amount of time we’ve been able to work on them.”
This game featured a big night to the sophomore Corbin Christensen. He scored 24 points and pulled down seven rebounds. The Ellis brothers combined for 17 points, nine for Isaac. Corbin Christensen, Jenks and Isaac Ellis led in rebounds with seven.
“It was a breakout game for Corbin, and I’m sure he will be guarded a bit heavier in future games,” coach Christensen said. “The guys stepped up defensively when compared with other games, but we still more to work on.”