Lionhearted

WENATCHEE – Down by 15 points early in the third quarter, the Moses Lake Christian Academy/Covenant Christian School boys basketball team needed a spark if they hoped to come back and take home a Central Washington 1B title.

That spark came from senior Jeff Boorman, who scored 24 of his 30 points in the second half to lead the Lions to a 59-58 win over Riverside Christian on Thursday night.

“I just felt like we needed something, someone’s got to turn up,” Boorman said. “It’s a team effort, but I just knew I had to do something.”

Boorman got going midway through the third quarter, dominating on both the offensive and defensive ends of the court. Whether it was stealing the ball or driving to the rim, the senior played a significant role in MLCA/CCS’s 11-0 run to get back in the game in the third quarter.

“Just like he has all year, Jeff (Boorman) was the spark,” MLCA/CCS Head Coach Emerson Ferguson said. “He just kind of woke up – that guy played lights out tonight.”

Riverside Christian led 17-14 after the first quarter but shut down the MLCA/CCS offense in the second quarter to take a 32-20 lead into the half. The Crusaders were also finding success from beyond the arc, connecting on four three-pointers through the first 16 minutes of game time.

“I think we were over-excited, didn’t come in as calm as we needed to in the first half,” Ferguson said. “Even though we had been here before, I think we were just over-excited. We were looking at the finish line before the race even started. We had to rebound and pull our wits together.”

The Lions flipped the script on defense in the second half, forcing the Crusaders into numerous turnovers that allowed them to tie the game at 39 with under one minute remaining in the third quarter.

“Energy and defense, those are the two things that woke up,” Ferguson said. “We didn’t really play defense, we gave them whatever they wanted in the first half. In the second half, it was one of those things where it takes one person or one play to bring that energy, then everyone else wakes up. Tonight, it was Jeff (Boorman).”

The fourth quarter began with Boorman scoring the Lion’s first 12 points of the quarter, kickstarted by back-to-back three-pointers.

“Today, I just saw everything differently,” Boorman said. “I saw openings, I saw opportunities, I saw options.”

With both sides hoping to leave Wenatchee with a district championship, the Lions and Crusaders traded baskets down the stretch that set up Riverside Christian with a 58-57 lead with 26.4 seconds on the clock.

During an MLCA/CCS timeout, Ferguson drew up a play that he said “should be open.”

Ferguson also let the players on the floor know what to do if the shot missed; get a rebound.

“‘You have to crash,’” Ferguson said. “In a championship game, (the officials) are going to let you play. The boys, they hustled because they wanted the ball more.”

After the first shot and follow-up put-back had missed, it was only fitting that Boorman had the chance to advance the Lions to the 2023 State Basketball Tournament. The senior’s shot fell through the basket, giving the Lions a 59-58 lead with .4 seconds remaining. Riverside Christian’s Hail Mary throw had missed, and the Lions were district champions for the second year in a row.

“We got goal No. 3,” Ferguson said. “Now it’s on to goal No. 4, which is the regional game.”

MLCA/CCS placed sixth at last year’s state tournament. Now, the Lions await their seeding.

“As happy as I am, it shouldn’t feel any different,” Boorman said. “This is how we were last year, so it should just come to us naturally. This game felt different – Riverside, it’s a little bit of a rivalry. It’s a lot better of a feeling this time.”

Ian Bivona can be reached at ibivona@columbiabasinherald.com.

Box Score

MLCA/CCS 14-6-19-20 59

Riverside Christian 17-15-9-17 58