Zach Phillips goes off for 43 points; Chiefs win CBBN opener
Connor Vanderweyst/Columbia Basin Herald Moses Lake guard Evan McLean drives to the basket and is fouled against Eisenhower.
Connor Vanderweyst/Columbia Basin Herald Moses Lake point guard Cory Kunjara dribbles between his legs against Eisenhower.
Connor Vanderweyst/Columbia Basin Herald Moses Lake's Zach Phillips spins around Eisenhower defender John McDonald.
Connor Vanderweyst/Columbia Basin Herald Moses Lake point guard Cory Kunjara (5) passes the ball ahead against Eisenhower.
MOSES LAKE — Moses Lake head coach John Hohman likes to think of his team as a bunch of fishermen.
Throughout the game, his players will reel in their catch, let it go then reel it in again. Sometimes the “fish” gets away, sometimes its hauled onto the deck and gutted.
Saturday resembled the latter as Moses Lake (1-0, 2-2) led by as much as 23 points in the fourth quarter and won its Columbia Basin Big Nine opener against Eisenhower 97-76.
Reigning CBBN Player of the Year Zach Phillips made an early case to repeat in that honor with a career-high 43 points.
“We came out and our defensive pressure was just amazing,” he said. “I was just thinking we’re getting whatever we want on offense so the cards fell the right away and it just kind of happened.”
Moses Lake’s press forced Eisenhower into errant passes from the opening tip-off. The Chiefs racked up 25 steals as a team — six each from Evan McLean and Logan Sperline.
“Tonight he (Sperline) was really in the right spot,” Hohman said. “I think with what we’re doing, I think that’s a good combination for him or a good fit, I should say... And he’s so physical, that’s a nice thing.”
That defense translated to plenty of offense.
Phillips began his big night with 10 first-quarter points. Supplemented by seven points from McLean and six from Dax Lindgren, Moses Lake led 29-14 after one quarter.
In the second quarter, Phillips converted a three-point play to give Moses Lake a 20-point lead, 47-27.
Eisenhower, to its credit, refused to go away despite its ambivalence on the defensive end. Giovanni Diaz scored 14 of his team-high 26 points in the first half and Efrain Araujo kept things interesting with 15 second-quarter points.
“We gave up too many easy looks,” Hohman said. “I think coming back transition we’ve got to do a better job of that and they really did a nice job attacking us with that, I thought.”
In a game with no lead changes, the Cadets got as close as nine points in the fourth quarter before Phillips took over.
Phillips scored 13 in the fourth quarter, including a three-pointer that ballooned the lead to 19 points. A pair of free throws pushed Phillips over 40 points and he checked out with around two minutes remaining with 43.
“I wish we would have just kept it at 20 the entire game, but I was happy that we were able to fight back... They had some momentum, but we just took it away right when they got it,” he said.
Score by quarters
E — 14 24 21 17 76
ML — 29 20 19 29 97
Scoring
Phillips 43, Cory Kunjara 16, Sperline 11, McLean 11, Lindgren 10, Michael Byers 4, Kyle Karstetter 2
Next: vs. Sunnyside (1-0, 4-0), Dec. 16, 7:30 p.m.