The Mount Si Wildcat boys’ basketball team’s season ended last Saturday as the Newport Knights eliminated the ‘Cats 57-48 in a Kingco 3A Tournament loser-out game at Bellevue Community College. A 60-52 loss to Skyline a few days earlier put the Wildcats in the consolation bracket fighting for the fifth spot to the Sea-King tournament.

Against Newport, senior guard Logan Ratcliffe scored a game-high 21 points for Mount Si in a valiant effort, but Newport’s speed and athleticism was too much in the end, as Mount Si’s season came to a halt despite a second place finish in the Kingco 3A Valley Division. Senior Justin Mezistrano scored 15 to lead a balanced Knights attack.

Wildcat senior guard/forward Casey Hough summed up the performance.

“Our shots weren’t dropping,” he said. “We just didn’t do what we needed to do to get the job done, I guess.”

The first half was competitive, as Newport opened the scoring. With 3:38 left in the first quarter, Ratcliffe hit a basket to put Mount Si up 4-3. On the ensuing possession Newport retook the lead and held it until Wildcats’ senior guard/forward Chris Lyle hit a three-pointer with 57 seconds left to tie the game 9-9. Hough hit a free throw 30 seconds later, and Mount Si was ahead again. They finished the first period up 12-9.

The Wildcats held the lead for the first three minutes of the second quarter, but Knight junior Gary Peterson’s basket with 5:00 left in the half put Newport up, as it turned out, for good. The Knights pulled away and had an 11 point lead, 29-18, at half.

The Knights maintained their lead throughout the second half and were ahead by 15, 41-26, to end the third quarter. They then cruised through the final period to the win. Newport advanced to the Sea-King District Tournament, which for them was a relief after being forced into the loser-out game by an upset defeat on Thursday by Bellevue High School.

For the complete story, pick up a copy of this week’s Valley Record