With a star sophomore that provides highlight reel dunks and several players that can shoot from the perimeter, the King’s boys basketball team doesn’t usually have a problem putting up points.
However, it’s the defensive side of the ball the Knights try to emphasize.
King’s has outscored its opponents by an average of 24 points this season and a big part of that has to do with the Knights’ aggressive, stifling defense.
“The thing that’s really unique about this group is they love to play defense,” said King’s head coach Rick Skeen. “We talk all the time about putting on a show on defense. We want people to pay money to come watch us play defense. … These kids take a lot of pride in their defense and I think our numbers throughout the year have shown that. Our best chance to win Thursday night is with our defense.”
The Knights allow just 41 points per game and have allowed 35 points or more just once in the playoffs.
After hanging on against Lynden Christian, 74-63, in the 1A District 1 title game, the Knights suffered a scary bus accident. King’s had all players and coaches available for the regional matchup, and the Knights responded with a 60-35 victory over the Tarriers to clinch a berth in the state tournament for the third consecutive time. King’s has lost in the state championship game each of the past two seasons.
“These are the best eight teams in the state,” Skeen said. “La Salle’s good enough to beat us and so we have to be ready to play La Salle on Thursday. If we do that, we’ll see what happenes after.”
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