Fine Line: Finley free throws lift Braves

Matt Finley gave it his best shot when La Conner faced a frantic South Whidbey comeback bid Saturday night.

And, fortunately for the Braves, that shot – the free throw – was just enough for La Conner to secure a hard-fought 61-59 non-league home hoop triumph.

Finley delivered nine of 10 pressure-packed foul shots down the stretch as La Conner High withstood a 32-point Falcon blitz in the final stanza.

Finley finished with 11 points, joining Cameron Sherman and Skylar Krueger in double-digits for the Braves.

Sherman scored a team-high 18 points, and also grabbed three rebounds and blocked a pair of shots. He was active and crafty in the paint opposite South Whidbey’s stout front-liners.

Krueger, who chipped in 10 points, drained La Conner’s lone trey.

The hosts led 23-13 in a somewhat sluggish first half, then took a 38-27 edge into the fourth period.

That’s when the pace picked up and things got interesting.

Almost too interesting, it turned out.

The Falcons crashed the boards for repeated second-shot opportunities, while at the La Conner end of the floor Finley and other Braves’ players drew fouls slashing to the bucket.

La Conner’s ability to convert at the foul stripe – the Braves meshed 18 of 26 free throws – proved the difference. Though barely.

“The South Whidbey kids were pretty big inside,” La Conner Coach Scott Novak said afterward. “They outrebounded us, which was kind of disappointing because that’s been our bread and butter so far. It’s the first time this year that we’ve been outrebounded.

“But,” he added, “there were a lot of positives to take away from this. We got off to a fast start, Cameron Sherman played an excellent game, and Matt Finley was clutch at the foul line.”

La Conner did its utmost to get the ball in Finley’s hands late in the game with South Whidbey fouling to stop the clock. It was a plot that paid repeated dividends.

Hudson Zavala and Sean Hulbert added nine points each for the Braves. Wil James tallied four points to round out the La Conner attack.

The versatile Zavala created a bevy of scoring opportunities for his teammates, dishing off a game-high 10 assists.

He, Hulbert, and James also reeled in four caroms apiece.

With the win, La Conner improved to 3-0 going into a Dec. 27 date with Neah Bay in first round action of the Port Townsend Invitational Holiday Tournament.

That game is set for 2:15 p.m.

Coach Novak is giving his squad an early Christmas present – a few days off from practice to rest the legs before resuming workouts Thursday.

“We’ll be looking to pick up our defense and rebounding,” he said. “Those are two areas where we have to be consistent game in and game out.”

The good news is La Conner thus far is shooting the ball better than anticipated. In addition to a 70 per cent night at the foul line, the Braves shot a respectable 43 per cent from the floor against a bigger South Whidbey club.

Now La Conner High is hoping it finds Neah Bay in a foul mood on Friday.