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When the River Ridge junior guard hit his fourth 3-pointer of the third quarter as time expired, all Wallace could do is turn and smile at his teammates.
Wallace celebrated his 18th birthday with a game-high 23 points, including making five of the Hawks’ 10 3-pointers in a 67-58 victory over Black Hills in a 2A Evergreen Conference boys basketball showdown.
Wallace didn’t have many touches in the first half, but lit it up for 18 points in the third and fourth quarters. All 12 of his third-quarter points came from long distance, including the high-arcing 3-pointer near the River Ridge bench as the third-quarter horn sounded that gave the Hawks a 50-32 lead.
“I caught the ball and saw the clock and threw (the ball) up,” Wallace said. “We practice that a lot. I thought it was going to hit the backboard. Somehow, it hit the bottom of the net.”
With River Ridge’s victory, combined with North Thurston’s 86-69 win over Tumwater on Friday, the Hawks (9-8 overall, 6-3 EvCo) are a half-game up on the Thunderbirds for second place in the conference.
River Ridge shot 57 percent (25-for-44), including 60 percent in the first half. In all, the Hawks were 10 of 14 from 3-point range.
“We live and die by the 3,” River Ridge coach Jeremy Landram said.
In addition to Wallace’s 23 points, Howie Harper added 15 and Micah Hardeman 11.
The Hawks’ largest lead – 55-36 – came on Wallace’s fifth and final 3-pointer. That’s when Black Hills (6-8, 2-6) started its comeback. In a five-minute span, the Wolves went on a 16-6 run and trailed 61-55 with 1:34 left on Mario Ifanse’s three-point play.
While River Ridge was playing its third game this week, it was Black Hills’ first game in two weeks, and the rustiness showed early. Because last week’s weather canceled all high school events, as well as a bye in the league schedule, the Wolves were playing for the first time since Jan. 13 – when they fell 78-49 to Tumwater at home. They turn around and play Aberdeen on the road today.
“It seemed like early on, we needed a spark, and we couldn’t get a spark at the right time,” Black Hills coach Jamie Berg said. “I think defensively, we could’ve helped a little bit better, but they’re (River Ridge) quick.”
Senior Jaylin Wright led the Wolves with 17 points. Mario Ifanse chipped in with 12 points, and Sammy Porter had 11.
Meg Wochnick: 360-754-5473 mwochnick@theolympian.com www.theolympian.com/southsoundsports
