Lions defeat Lummi Nation in OT, place 4th at state

SPOKANE — Heading into overtime tied at 38, the No. 3 seed MLCA/CCS Lions outscored No. 1 Lummi Nation 7-2 in the four-minute overtime period to defeat the Blackhawks 45-40, placing fourth in the 1B Boys State Basketball Tournament.

“Lummi and our team, we were the two teams that were ranked No. 1 and No. 2 most of the year,” MLCA/CCS head coach Emerson Ferguson said. “The boys took it as a challenge to, ‘Alright, now we get to play them on the hardwood.’ The boys kind of took that to heart, and were like, ‘Alright, let’s do it.’”

MLCA/CCS led the Blackhawks 23-12 after the first half, but Lummi Nation held the Lions to nine third-quarter points and cut the deficit to four points entering the fourth quarter. 

“We stopped scoring,” Emerson Ferguson said. “We still had shots, but they just weren’t going in. They were scoring and we weren’t, and obviously, that’s going to close the gap. It was one of those things where we just had to weather that storm, which we’ve done before. Our experience with those types of games — the boys didn’t panic.”

Lummi Nation held the Lions in check on the offensive end for much of the fourth quarter, tying the game and taking a 36-33 lead on back-to-back three-pointers by junior Karson Revey. Lion sophomore James Robertson tied the game with a banked-in three-pointer, and after Lummi Nation broke the tie on a basket, Lion sophomore Dennis Gulenko once again tied the game at 38 on a shot from underneath the rim.

With the Blackhawks having one final possession with 12 seconds left on the clock, Gulenko blocked a potential game-winning shot for Lummi Nation, sending the game into overtime.

“The very first game of the season we went into overtime, and we just outlasted them,” Emerson Ferguson said. “We dominated the overtime with points, we dominated with getting the defensive stops, attacking the basket and getting the points. That was exactly what I told them we needed to do.”

Lummi Nation’s lone two points of the overtime period came in their first possession, with the Lions taking the lead after Robertson stole the ball on the defensive end, and sophomore Johnny Ferguson connected on a three-pointer to give MLCA/CCS a 42-40 lead, eventually holding on for a 45-40 win.

“They didn’t close out on me fast enough, and I got the shot off and it went in,” Johnny Ferguson said.”

Johnny Ferguson scored 27 points in Saturday’s win, which led all scorers, and five of MLCA/CCS’s seven overtime points.

“The kid is just phenomenal,” Emerson Ferguson said. “He’s so dynamic, and he can score in so many ways. I knew that if he had a chance – whether they were in zone or man, or if they leave him open — he was going to make them pay for it. He certainly did today.”

15 of his points came from beyond the three-point arc, hitting five of 10 three-point attempts.

“I was just on fire from the three,” Johnny Ferguson said. “I just kept hitting them — except for that one airball.”

MLCA/CCS opened Saturday’s game on a 12-2 scoring run, leading 15-7 after the first quarter.

“We always want to start strong and start fast,” Emerson Ferguson said. “It’s important for us to do that, and that set the tone for the first half.”

“We were ready for this game,” MLCA/CCS senior Caleb Jones said. “We’ve been preparing all year for this moment.”

The Lions will have two players graduate off of this year’s roster; Jones and senior Jonah Robertson.

“It’s a weird feeling,” Jonah Robertson said. “I’m glad that we placed my senior year, but I know that we could have done a lot better. These guys are winning a state title next year — they’ve got a lot of young kids on this team and didn’t know what it’s like to play a full game in the arena. I feel like the pressure got to us in the quarterfinals, and we’ve got to get over that hump.”

This year’s placing was the second for the Lion seniors, having placed sixth in 2022.

“Fourth place is a lot better than sixth place,” Jones said. 

With only two seniors graduating, the Lions will be returning the bulk of their players for the 2024-25 season; the eight remaining players on the roster are all underclassmen.

“For getting fourth place, they said it was the best we’ve gotten in 15 years,” Johnny Ferguson said. “(With) the experience we’ll be more relaxed next year when we’re in this position again.”

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

Box score

Lummi Nation: 7-5-16-10-2 40
MLCA/CCS: 15-8-9-6-7 45

    MLCA/CCS sophomore Johnny Ferguson (24) scored 27 points in Saturday’s 45-40 overtime win over Lummi Nation.
  

    MLCA/CCS sophomore Dennis Gulenko (32) blocks a potential game-winning shot against Lummi Nation in the final seconds of the fourth quarter.
  

    MLCA/CCS senior Caleb Jones, in blue, dribbles the ball down the floor against Lummi Nation. Jones is one of two Lion seniors, joined by senior Jonah Robertson.
  

    MLCA/CCS sophomore James Robertson (14) lays the ball in for basket in the second half against Lummi Nation.