The third-ranked Decatur Gators (11-1 in the SPSL South, 14-2 overall) are well on their way to securing another South Puget Sound League South Division championship.
The Gators downed the Curtis Vikings, 57-48, Tuesday night to take a two-game lead in the South with just four games to play in the regular season. The Gators finished in a three-way tie for the SPSL North crown last season and are 49-11 during the last four seasons.
Decatur led only 25-24 at halftime, but turned it on in the second half. The Gators built up a 12-point lead in the fourth quarter against the Vikings (10-3, 14-4) and limited Curtis to just 4-for-23 on 3-pointers.
Decatur was led by the 18 points, six assists, five rebounds and five steals of senior Marcus Tibbs.
With Curtis leading 28-27 early in the second half, Decatur’s Cam Schilling converted on a 3-pointer to give the Gators a 30-28 lead. The Gators never trailed again and outscored the Vikings 16-8 during the third quarter.
Tuesday’s win over Curtis completed the season sweep for Decatur. The Gators’ remaining SPSL South games are against Bethel, Graham-Kapowsin, Beamer and Bethel.
Schilling had nine points and five rebounds and guarded Vikings leading scorer Chad Rasmussen for much of the game, limiting him to just seven points. Terrell Williams and Jerron Smith each scored 10 points for Decatur. Jordan McCloud had eight points and nine rebounds.
At Federal Way 63, Auburn 45
Top-ranked Federal Way (14-2, 10-2) led 18-6 after the first quarter and continued to dominate the Trojans all night. Junior Cole Dickerson led four Federal Way players in double-figure scoring with 17 points and 13 rebounds. Jeff Gouveia had 11 points to lead Auburn (11-4, 9-4).
Kentwood 56, at Jefferson 45
The Raiders (6-9, 5-8) just couldn’t stop Kentwood forward Josh Smith. The 6-foot-9 Smith had a season-high 40 points, leading the No. 2 Conquerors over TJ. Kentwood (12-4, 10-2) led by only one point entering the fourth quarter, but outscored the Raiders, 17-7, in the final eight minutes. Xavyr Moss scored 21 for Jefferson and Cramer Doughty and Spencer Hicks both tallied eight points.
At Beamer 47, Bethel 40
The Titans (7-5, 8-8) remained in fifth place in the SPSL South with a hard-fought win over the Bethel Braves Tuesday night. Beamer trailed by one point entering the fourth quarter, but outscored the Braves, 18-10, in the fourth. Kevin Davis led the Titans with 12 points and Vlad Aficiuc and Napa Mefi both chipped in 11 points.
