Savvy Sumner clutch in final minute over Puyallup for 4A SPSL boys basketball title, 3 takeaways
TACOMA, Wash. - Senior Karl Liedtke scored the go-ahead basket with less than a minute to go, and 10th-ranked Sumner made five of six free throws in the final 11.9 seconds to hold off Puyallup, 58-54, for the 4A SPSL boys basketball tournament title Saturday at Tacoma Community College.
The Spartans last league title came a decade ago when they captured the 2A SPSL crown in 2013-14.
Jalen Hyppa led all scorers with 17 points off the bench for Sumner, which defeated Rogers of Puyallup and Olympia to reach the league title game. Isaiah Sonntag tallied 15 points for the Vikings.
Here are three takeaways from the Sumner-Puyallup game:
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Photo by Todd Milles
BORROWED FROM SMALL-SCHOOL RIVAL
Back when Bill Liley was coaching at King's, he always admired a back-door play that Roger DeBoer ran at Seattle Christian - so much that he put it in his own playbook.
And with the game tied at 51-51 with 56 seconds to go, Liley went to it for the decisive bucket.
The ball came to Kane Wood on the left block, and he flipped a nifty pass over his left shoulder to a streaking Liedtke coming up the right baseline for the easy layin - and 53-51 Spartans' advantage with 37 seconds remaining.
"(Wood) is a heck of a passer ... and the kids executed it," Liley said.
Added Puyallup coach Kevin Olson: "We lost track, and gave them an easy one."
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JALEN HYPPA IN AN ASSASSIN'S ROLE
With this deep group of seniors, Liley elected to bring Hyppa, a junior, off the bench in what he called a "shot-in-the-arm" role.
"It's because he’s not afraid, he’s aggressive and he has the skill level to get it done," Liley said. "His role is to put the ball in the basket - and he loves it."
Hyppa delivered when the Spartans needed it the most.
The guard helped Sumner erase a first-quarter deficit with his first nine points all coming in the second quarter, including midcourt steals he took for layups. He also sank a 3-pointer.
And Hyppa was on the floor late, converting 3-of-4 three throw attempts.
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GROWING EXPERIENCE FOR PUYALLUP
Unlike the two regular-season losses to Sumner, the Vikings - with just two seniors on the roster- took this one right down to the wire.
They erased a six-point halftime deficit by starting the third quarter on an 8-0 run.
And they wiped out another six-point deficit early in the fourth quarter by scoring nine unanswered points over a four-minute stretch to grab a 48-45 lead after two Sonntag free throws.
But Cooper Hartley answered with a three-point play - and then a deep 3-pointer to put Sumner back in front.
"It was frustrating we were not able to execute, but I was proud of the guys for battling back," Olson said.
"This is a new experience fo us - we haven’t played in a game like this. We are learning, and hoping when the next opportunity rises, we will be a little bit better."
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Photo by Todd Milles
Photo by Todd Milles
Photo by Todd Milles
