MARYSVILLE — For the Tulalip Heritage boys basketball team, Tuesday night’s game just meant a little more.
More than a second straight trip to the Class 1B state tournament, which the Hawks earned with a 69-61 win over Muckleshoot Tribal School in a crowded gym at Marysville Getchell High School.
More than a trip to the Tri-District semifinals, which third-seeded Tulalip Heritage will take to face No. 2 Neah Bay for a 6:30 p.m. Thursday game at Sequim High School.
“I’m excited to go to state and represent my people and my whole entire tribe,” said junior guard Davien Parks, who energized the Hawks with eight of his 18 points in the third quarter as his team pulled away. “It’s a big deal to my family, my peers and my community members. … Seeing us — my community — they could piggyback off of us and our season.”
The 19-2 Hawks, who referred to the visiting team from Auburn as their “brothers from the south,” played like they were up against family at a neighborhood hoop. They showed respect for each other, but both teams played a hard, physical game feeling like they had a lot to prove.
Sophomore guard JJ Gray was so immersed in winning the game against the Kings that he learned from The Herald after the game that his team earned a state playoff berth.
All that mattered on Tuesday was beating Muckleshoot Tribal School.
For Gray, it was all about pride. Though standing just 5 feet, 6 inches, Gray used superior quickness and fearlessness to drive to the hoop, finishing with both his left and right hands to compile a team-high 21 points.
“You can’t quit until the game’s over,” said Gray, who added six assists and five rebounds to his scoring output. “You’ve got to go full speed, every play, every possession.”
The Hawks seemed to feel the pressure in the early moments as they missed their first few shots on a night when game officials allowed both teams to play physically. Gray’s quickness proved too much once he got going, though, as he scored six points during a 5-minute span in the first quarter. His tough runner in traffic gave Tulalip Heritage its first lead at 11-9 with 1:33 to go in the opening period.
The Hawks never trailed again.
Leading 32-28 at halftime, Parks scored six points in the first 3 minutes, 14 seconds of the second half as Tulalip Heritage opened a double-digit lead. The one thing missing up to that point was success from outside the 3-point line. Gray and Amare Hatch changed that as they each hit a 3 to put the Kings (16-5) in a 54-38 hole entering the final quarter.
Hatch finished the night with 11 points, a team-high nine rebounds, five assists and four steals. Takola Black Tomahawk added 11 to give Tulalip Heritage four double-digit scorers.
The Hawks withstood a game-high 25 points from Muckleshoot Tribal School sophomore guard Payton Brown, who will try to lead his team to a win in Thursday’s winner-to-state, loser-out game against Evergreen Lutheran.
Tulalip Heritage, which recorded 18 assists on 28 made field goals, steadily pulled away in the second half by often using multiple passes to weave through the Kings’ defense.
The Hawks built a 67-47 advantage with under three minutes remaining, but it was clear the Kings had no intentions of giving up. They fouled repeatedly in the final minute, called timeouts and kept putting up rapid shots even though victory appeared out of reach. There would be no packing it in by either team, though on this night.
“We had two tribal schools tonight, so we all know each other,” said Tulalip Heritage head coach Shawn Sanchey, who has led the Hawks to state in each of his first two seasons. “We have intermixed families, you know, so there’s a little more pride involved with it.”
Sanchey, the Tulalip Boys & Girls Club unit director who played his high school basketball at Tulalip Heritage and helped the Hawks place sixth at state in 2014, said bringing back the program’s pride was his first priority.
“These kids bring so much pride and joy to our community, and it’s amazing to coach,” Sanchey said. “Because I get to sit back and see it. It’s a lot of fun. I’m just proud of them for the work they put in to be where we’re at.”
The community is what drew Parks to transfer from Marysville Pilchuck to Tulalip Heritage after his sophomore season.
“I enjoy playing with my brothers, because I grew up with each and every one of these guys,” said Parks, who also contributed eight rebounds and four steals. “I’ve known them since I was 3. We’ve been going to the Boys & Girls Club our whole life and the teen center down at Don Hatch (Youth Center). We’ve all been growing up, and now we’re coming together on the court and putting it together.”
Though Tulalip Heritage punched its ticket to state, the Hawks will play two more Tri-District games. Should they get by Neah Bay Thursday, Lummi Nation — the only team to be the Hawks this season — will likely await them in Saturday’s tournament championship game at the Muckleshoot Community Center.
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