Olympia wins would-be nailbiter when South Kitsap forfeits with 21.3 seconds to play

Olympia High School picked up what will likely be its most outlandish win of the season Tuesday night.

The Bears led visiting South Kitsap, 47-45, with 21.3 seconds to play in the fourth quarter when an official abruptly stopped play.

South Kitsap coach John Callaghan was given his second technical foul in 20 seconds and ejected from the game.

An official ended the game when Callaghan did not leave the floor, forcing the Wolves to forfeit and awarding the Bears a 2-0 win.

Olympia coach John Kiley, who has coached high school basketball for 13 years, said he has never seen a game end in a forfeit that way.

“Obviously the game ended in a way that none of us want to see it end, but I was proud of our guys,” Kiley said. “I thought they kept fighting tonight.

“We didn’t really celebrate, but I celebrated their effort. We kept working to put ourselves in position after a really tough start.”

The Bears (9-4, 6-3 4A SPSL) started cold from the field, managing just 19 points in the first half, but climbed back in the third quarter.

Ketner Young gave Olympia its first lead since the opening minutes by capping a 7-0 drive with a contested layup and following free throw with 4:21 to go in the third.

“We really just had to keep going, putting shots up, and eventually they’d fall,” Young said.

The lead changed four times before Young hit a 3-pointer to tie the game at 44-44 with 1:55 remaining in the game. Toran Effland gave the Bears the final lead on a short floater less than a minute later.

Young and forward Andrew Lindsay each had 12 points for the Bears before the game was called. South Kitsap’s Jackson Kambich led all scorers before the forfeit with 19 points, and Deante Ward had 13 for the Wolves.

South Kitsap cut Olympia’s lead to 46-45 on a free throw, but Callaghan was called for his first technical with 41.2 seconds to play for what appeared to be stepping too far onto the court.

Lucas Boswer made one of the technical free throws, and the Bears passed the ball around on the ensuing possession, attempting to run down the shot clock. Callaghan was given his second technical before Olympia took a shot.

Olympia begins a three-game league road trip Thursday at Sumner.

“We know what we need to do for the upcoming games, we know what we’re capable of, so we’re just going to take it to the second half of the season,” Young said.

This story was originally published January 9, 2018 at 11:22 PM with the headline "Olympia wins would-be nailbiter when South Kitsap forfeits with 21.3 seconds to play."