Hot winter nights for Mount Si boys basketball players

Published 6:15 pm Monday, December 19, 2011

Coach Steve Helm never knows who it’ll be. But chances are, someone new will be hot on a given night.

Last Tuesday, Dec. 13, it was junior Jason Smith’s turn. Smith, Mount Si’s second-highest scorer in the Wildcats’ 46-44 squeaker over Juanita, added nine, including two crucial three-point snipes in the game’s final three minutes.

“If I’m going to come up big for my team, I’ve got to capitalize on those opportunities,” Smith said. “I feel like I’ve been a spark off the bench the last couple of games.”

In those tense final minutes, “Jason came through big for us, really helped us off the bench,”  said sophomore Levi Botten. “When someone’s hot like that, you just run plays and try to give them the ball.”

“Tonight was a great win,” said senior Anthony McLaughlin, who led with 17 points. “Everybody contributed something. We have so many role players. We’re going to have a guy who’s hot every night. Tonight was his night. He is capable of scoring at will. He’s a great player, and is going to get a lot of minutes.”

“We stuck to our game plan,” Botten said of the night, in which Mount Si struck early the second half to win from behind.

Jack Nelson, a sophomore, has also had good moments in the early season. An outside shooting threat, small and quick guard, he had eight points in overtime against Interlake.

In a team that’s growing its depth, Helm said it can be surprising who turns in key performances. “It’s fun to see who that’s going to be every night,” he said.

Mount Si is at the Lahaina Invitational in Hawaii this week.