Tualatin. West Linn. For all the marbles. And Timberwolves are feeling confident after semifinal win over Barlow: ‘We’re ready’

“We’ve got nothing to lose. They beat us three times. If we can get this one, it means the world.”

By Paul Valencia | Photos by Jon Olson 

It’s a new Tualatin boys basketball team this season, but with the same winning philosophy.

“I knew we were going to be back here,” junior Jaden Steppe said.

Sure, these Timberwolves have four new starters, but Steppe noted that last season’s reserves were good enough to start just about anywhere else.

“Last year, we had about 10 guys who were even in practice,” he said.

So, after Tualatin won it all last year, and graduation took place in the spring, the new Timberwolves went back to work with the goal to return to the state championship game.

Josiah Lake scored 27 points, AJ Noland had 17, and Steppe scored 15 points Friday night, and Tualatin never trailed in a 68-55 victory over Barlow in the semifinals of the OSAA 6A boys basketball state tournament at the Chiles Center.

The Bruins cut a 15-point second-half deficit to three points in the fourth quarter, but the Timberwolves never stumbled.

“We were pretty calm,” Steppe said. “We knew going in we were the better team.”

Now, the Timberwolves will take on the better team — seeding-wise, at least — in Saturday night’s championship game. No. 3 Tualatin (23-5) faces No. 1 West Linn (28-1). It’s a rematch of last year’s semifinal game, won by the Timberwolves.

This season, West Linn has topped Tualatin three times, including an overtime game.

“You know we’re ready,” Lake said. “We’ve got nothing to lose. They beat us three times. If we can get this one, it means the world.” 

“Out of all the teams, we were the closest,” Steppe said. “We know how to beat them. We should have beat them once or twice. We’re ready. We’re going to play our hardest. They’re going to have to stop us at our very best. We’re really excited, and we’re not nervous.” 

That is how Tualatin maintained its lead against Barlow on Friday. The Timberwolves were never rattled.

A 3-pointer by Barlow’s Jahvari Martino to beat the third-quarter horn and a quick 3-pointer to open the fourth quarter by Jalen Atkins gave the Bruins some momentum. Later in the quarter, Atkins made three free throws and 40 seconds later his basket made it a three-point game at 51-48 with 5:03 to play.

Lake answered right away, and it was all Tualatin from there. The Timberwolves outscored the Bruins 17-7 in the final five minutes, going 9 for 10 from the free throw line in the final three minutes.

“We just kept our composure. We bond together when times get tough. That’s what we did tonight,” Lake said. “We kept our calm, we kept our cool, didn’t get rushed. We stayed in our own game and put up the ‘dub.’”

The Timberwolves got a little something from everyone, too. Steppe also had eight rebounds, three assists and three blocked shots. Jayden Fortier led the team with nine rebounds. He also had three assists. Noland made three big 3-pointers, and it was his fast-break dunk that rocked the backboard and secured the victory with 1:35 to play, giving Tualatin an 11-point lead. 

“All the guys, we have trust in each other. That’s a big part of our team,” Lake said. “We just trust each other with our lives. If one person is making a shot, swing it to them, we trust them, we believe in them. I lead the way sometimes, but there are other guys who have a big role within the team.”

The game opened as if it were going to be a classic. Tualatin never trailed, but it was 5-5, 7-7, 9-9 and 11-11 as both teams answered the other.

Tualatin scored the last five points of the quarter and set out on its way. The Timberwolves pushed the lead to 12 points at halftime, shooting 12 for 21 from the field while holding Barlow to 8-for-27 shooting. 

A 3-pointer from Lake early in the third quarter made it a 15-point game. Noland’s 3-pointer late in the period made it 48-33. 

Barlow gave it a go, but could never fully recover.

“We made a run, but they took care of the ball, and they made free throws,” Barlow coach Tom Johnson said. “Give them credit. They deserved to win.”

He added that his Bruins fell into some bad habits from earlier in the season. They took tough shots while missing the open man. They dug too deep of a hole.

“We didn’t play well enough to win,” Johnson said. “Ball movement is contagious and lack of ball movement is contagious.” 

Atkins led the Bruins with 15 points. Martino had 13, and Mason Bierbrauer added 11.

Barlow (25-4) will face Lincoln in the third-place game at 6:30 p.m. Saturday.

That will be followed by an all-Three Rivers League championship game. The Timberwolves believe this could be their time — once again. 

“We wanted to see them from the start,” Lake said. “We know we can compete.”

Players to watch at 6A boys tournament

COMPLETE PLAYOFF COVERAGE