The answer wasn’t hard for Issaquah head coach Jeff Altchech to find.
A quick glance at the post-game statistics and he knew immediately what needed to be fixed after Monday’s 66-56 loss to South Kitsap.
“The key for us tonight is we didn’t rebound the basketball,” he said. “The other thing was, I hate to say it, but we were pretty selfish — we didn’t share the ball.”
The Eagles were out-rebounded 42-22 and had just four assists, en route to their second straight loss at the Bellevue Community College Christmas Classic.
Along with its rebounding and passing troubles, Issaquah connected on just 16 of 50 shots for the game (32 percent). The Eagles were 17-for-26 on free throws (65 percent).
“We missed quite a few lay-ins and free throws,” Altchech said. “We’ve got to have those, we talked about that. Those are pretty good percentage shots.”
Despite its woes, Issaquah remained in the contest until the closing minutes. Senior Drew Nale provided Issaquah a 43-41 lead at the 7:10 mark of the fourth quarter via one of his four three-pointers. The Wolves responded with a Michael Longmire three-pointer just 18 seconds later, and never relinquished the lead. Issaquah kept within one score until Leon LaDeaux drilled a three-pointer with 3:50 left on the clock. LaDeaux’s shot started a 14-1 run by the Wolves.
There were 12 lead changes in Monday’s game, with the large difference coming down to offensive rebounds and second-chance points. South Kitsap scored 15 points on offensive rebounds. Issaquah had just two.
“We’ve got to box out better,” Altchech said. “Even if they’re bigger, we can still box out and get a rebound.”
Issaquah fell to 1-3 overall with the loss.
“We’re disappointed right now, but it’s still early in the season,” Altchech said.
The Eagles played Kennedy Tuesday afternoon in the consolation round of the BCC Christmas Classic. Issaquah is scheduled to face Bainbridge at 7 p.m., Saturday on the road.
Mount Rainier 80, Issaquah 62
The No. 5-ranked 3A team in the state, Mount Rainier, cruised to an 80-62 victory over Issaquah on Saturday in the first round of the BCC Christmas Classic.
The Eagles took a 4-0 lead on two quick scores from Joe Evans, but the Rams responded quickly. Mount Rainier went on to outscore Issaquah 21-7 the rest of the first quarter, highlighted by a three-point bank shot from Jarrell Banks at the buzzer. The Rams maintained a double-digit advantage the rest of the contest, led by Banks’ game-high 22 points.
Ross Zuhl paved the way for Issaquah with 15 points. Drew Nale had 14 and Nick Landdeck had 12.
