The Mercer Island boys basketball team placed second at the 2015 MaxPreps Holiday Classic, which took place Dec. 26-30 in Palm Springs, California.
Competing against 15 other teams from California, Nevada, Arizona, Texas and Utah, Mercer Island was the only participating team from Washington. The Islanders went 3-1, with the only loss coming against Santa Monica in the tournament’s championship game.
“We felt like we could’ve won [against Santa Monica] and we’re disappointed we didn’t finish the tournament out, but I’m super proud of our guys,” Islander coach Gavin Cree said. “We showed a lot of grit in this tournament that we haven’t been seeing as much in the first five games at home. And we saw some real good defensive play in this tournament.”
Mercer Island (8-2, 2-1) opened with a 60-40 win over Utah’s Bountiful Braves. In the second round, the Islanders needed a couple clutch shots from Josh Stenberg and Andrew Pickles to outlast Riverside’s JW North 87-86 in double overtime. Stenberg knocked down a 3-pointer in the waning seconds of regulation to send the game into the first OT, and Pickles sank another with under 10 seconds to go to send the game into the second overtime. Sam Nordale led the Islanders with 25 points in the win, while Pickles had 19 and Stenberg had 15.
“That was just a huge performance by the team to win that game,” Cree said. “Lots of clutch shots and exciting moments.”
Mercer Island again went to overtime in its semifinal contest against Las Vegas’ Desert Pines Jaguars, scoring 16 points in overtime to pull away and advance to the championship round.
In the final against Santa Monica, scoring woes befell Mercer Island, as the Vikings held the Islanders to three points in the second period and eight in the third. The Islanders whittled a 16-point deficit in the final frame and trailed 46-43 with 1:32 left. But it was as close as Mercer Island would get, as Santa Monica scored the final seven points of the contest. Stenberg and Nordale led the Islanders with 16 apiece.
Though not the finish the team had hoped for, Cree said he saw leadership emerge from his senior players and roles become more defined for his team, particularly from his starting post player.
“Andrew Pickles really showed a lot of growth as a player in this tournament. He’s just gotten a lot better and is playing very poised,” Cree said. “Him, Sam and Josh give a three-headed monster. Just [Pickles’] development within our system this year has been a really good thing.”
The Islanders host Sammamish at 7:15 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 5 at MIHS.
