Cory Hutsen only intended to help his teammate defend the shooter at the top of the three-point line.
Instead, the 6-foot-9 center found a nice little present at his feet, picked the ball up at half court and dribbled it downcourt for two crucial points.
“I saw he was kind of fumbling with it and I just went down and got it,” Hutsen said. “I just wanted to score.”
Hutsen’s steal and bucket put the Spartans up three points with 1:48 left Friday’s loser-out state playoff game with Stanwood. It also opened the door for a 8-3 run and a 60-57 victory guaranteeing Skyline its first ever state placement. They will play Mead in fifth-eighth place game at 11:30 a.m., Saturday. Skyline has only been to state one other in time, in 2003, and failed to place.
“It’s huge, it’s absolutely huge,” Skyline coach J. Jay Davis said. “You know up there … it’s a football factory. Those people up on the hill just live and breathe and eat that stuff. When I came along three years ago … people just said ‘There’s great athletes, a great environment, I just dont’ think you can succeed there.'”
Davis was quick to deflect the credit for this year’s success to the youth coaches in the area, and also the group of four football players – Kasen Williams, Miles Edwards, Cooper Pelluer and Michael Ford – who have helped his team.
“They might not play minutes in every game, but they’re so important to us in the locker room and at practice,” he said.
Skyline led comfortably through most of the first half of Friday’s game against Stanwood, going up 13-5 at the end of the first quarter and leading 26-23 at halftime.
The third quarter presented a problem, however. Skyline couldn’t find its offense, hitting on just one of its first seven shots. Stanwood, on the other hand, couldn’t be stopped. They went on a 17-3 run over the first six minutes of the quarter, including a 15-0 run capped off by Kale Schmidt’s three-pointer. The run pushed Stanwood’s lead to 39-29 with 2:12 left in the third.
As they have done all season, skyline refused to give in.
The Spartans went on their own 10-0 run tying the score back up before Schmidt hit another three to give Stanwood a 42-39 advantage at the end of the third.
“Our kids didn’t panic,” Davis said. “That’s a testament to their character. I told them in the locker room (after the game) ‘You guys keep me grounded because you don’t panic.’ I’m freaked out, but they keep me grounded.”
Skyline turned up its defensive pressure in the fourth quarter using a three-quarter-court trap, forcing six turnovers in the period.
“I was really surprised that they struggled with our pressure,” Davis said. “I think that got them on their heels a little bit, which took them out of their sync in the half court.”
Skyline was led by Hutsen’s game-high 24 points. Will Parker, Connor Gacek and Williams all scored nine apiece for the Spartans.
As for locking up the school’s first boys basketball placement, Hutsen said it’s a feeling that can’t be matched.
“This means a lot for our program,” he said. “We’ve never been here before and to establish that now means a lot.”
