2A regional basketball roundup: Tumwater boys, Black Hills girls games swapped
Two local basketball teams — the Tumwater High School boys and the Black Hills girls — got a shake-up Monday morning.
About 36 hours after the Class 2A state regional pairings were released Saturday night, a handful of changes redirected both of the 2A Southwest District 4 champions.
“We got an email (Monday) morning from the powers that be that said there were bracket changes,” Black Hills coach Tanya Greenfield said.
Because of seeding errors, the WIAA rearranged two games in each of the 2A brackets, which caused movement for eight teams.
Black Hills (20-3) will now play Clarkston (16-8), which is the District 5/6/7 No. 4 seed. The Wolves were originally slated to play Toppenish, the District 5/6/7 No. 3 seed.
Tumwater (16-6) now plays Selah (20-3), the boys District 5/6/7 No. 4. It originally had Ellensburg, the District 5/6/7 No. 3.
“It is frustrating, but it is what it is,” Tumwater coach Thomas Rowswell said. “This time of year, every team you play is tough, and you’re going to prepare for them the same. We still have time, and we’ll prepare for (Selah) just like we would against Ellensburg.”
Tumwater was knocked out in the regional round last season by Fife, 70-69. The T-Birds have won six in a row headed into regionals, including their second consecutive district championship at Saint Martin’s University this past Saturday.
“We know what we have to do to get to Yakima,” Rowswell said.
This is the third season in a row the Wolves will play in the state regional round. They haven’t advanced to the 2A state quarterfinals at the Yakima Valley SunDome the past two seasons.
Black Hills’ highest finish at state was second place after losing to Newport, 59-50, in the championship game in 1999.
“I feel good about the team understanding what this game means,” Greenfield said. “This is the third year we’ve been in this position. They understand the importance of the one game.”
Six local teams across three classifications advanced to this weekend’s regional round. All six played in the regional round last season. Three boys teams — Timberline (4A), No. 1 River Ridge (2A) and Tumwater (2A) — advanced. Three girls teams — No. 8 Black Hills (2A), River Ridge (2A) and Mary M. Knight (1B) — also make the return trip.
LOCAL STATE-REGIONAL MATCHUPS
4A BOYS
Timberline (16-8) vs. Issaquah (20-3)
When: 10 a.m. Saturday
Where: Bellevue College
Matchup: District 3 No. 5 seed vs. District 2/4 No. 1
2A BOYS
Selah (20-3) vs. Tumwater (16-6)
When: 6 p.m. Friday
Where: Mount Tahoma High School
Matchup: District 5/6/7 No. 4 vs. District 4 No. 1
Squalicum (19-4) vs. No. 1 River Ridge (21-2)
When: 8 p.m. Friday
Where: Puyallup High School
Matchup: District 1 No. 2 vs. District 2/3 No. 3
2A GIRLS
Clarkston (16-8) vs. No. 8 Black Hills (20-3)
When: 10 a.m. Saturday
Where: W.F. West High School
Matchup: District 5/6/7 No. 4 vs. District 4 No. 1
River Ridge (15-9) vs. Ellensburg (20-2)
When: 6 p.m. Saturday
Where: Eisenhower High School (Yakima)
Matchup: District 2/3 No. 6 vs. District 5/6/7 No. 1
1B GIRLS
Mary M. Knight (13-5) vs. Tulalip Heritage (22-1)
When: 2 p.m. Saturday
Where: Everett Community College
Matchup: District 4 No. 2 vs. District 1/2/3 No. 2
This story was originally published February 22, 2016 at 6:16 PM with the headline "2A regional basketball roundup: Tumwater boys, Black Hills girls games swapped."