Junior Nichols ignites No. 2 Auburn in third quarter, propels Trojans to WIAA 3A state championship game

The Trojans will face No. 4 Rainier Beach on Saturday for the championship

TACOMA – Points were at a premium in Friday’s 3A state semifinal between No. 2 Auburn and No. 5 Seattle Prep.

At halftime, the Panthers led just 17-14. It was clear that someone, anyone, on one of the teams was going to have to step up and offensively to help propel their team to victory to the state championship game.

The Trojans found two heroes – one in the form of senior Kaden Hansen, and the other in junior reserve Tyrell Nichols, who is making a case as the Trojans most important player of the state tournament. Nichols helped Auburn take control of a game in the third quarter, and Hansen put the game away in the final moments of the 45-34 victory.

Nichols knocked down two 3s and scored all eight of his points in the third quarter as the Trojans (25-2) outscored the Panthers (21-7) 17-6 in the quarter to take a 31-23 lead heading into the final period. And Hansen, son of head coach Ryan Hansen, sealed the game with a 3-pointer and two free throws in the game’s final 70 seconds.

Nichols also made a key 3-pointer in Thursday’s overtime quarterfinal victory over No. 1 Garfield.

“I think he gained some confidence last night,” Auburn head coach Ryan Hansen said of Nichols. “He was just ready. He was ready for his moment. He showed that again tonight. I’m really proud of him.”

Nichols gave the Trojans the momentum that both teams had desperately been looking for. The Panthers were able to cut the deficit to four midway through the final quarter, but Kaden Hansen closed the door on a would-be comeback attempt by Seattle Prep with his 3-pointer with 1:09 to play in the game and his two free throws with 38.8 seconds to play.

“It felt amazing,” Kaden Hansen said. “I shot it with confidence. My shot really wasn’t falling that much earlier, and it was just a big moment and you got to hit it.”

Both Nichols and Hansen finished with eight points.

The bulk of the scoring for Auburn came from seniors Trevon Blassingame and Maleek Arington. Blassingame had nine points and Arington finished with 12. Arington scored seven of those points in the fourth quarter, hitting a 3-pointer to extend the lead to seven and two driving layups that helped the Trojans stay in control of the game and setting the stage for Hansen to seal the game.

“Maleek is always going to be Maleek,” Blassingame said. “He’s clutch when we need a bucket. That’s what makes us so dangerous, we have multiple guys that can score when we need it.”

Prior to Friday’s game, the Panthers’ lowest point total of the season was 51, which came in a loss to 4A No. 1 Mount Si.

“It was the same game plan against Garfield,” Ryan Hansen said. “It was just about being tough, being gritty, defending, and rebounding. When you come here to the dome, you’ve got to do that really, really well, and we really defended the heck out of those guys.”

The Trojans’ 45 points were also a season-low for them.

The Trojans will face No. 4 Rainier Beach, which beat No. 7 Mt. Spokane 53-50 in Friday’s other semifinal, at 7 p.m. on Saturday for the championship.

Seattle Prep will play Mt. Spokane in the third-fifth place game at 11:15 a.m., which will be the final game for Panthers’ senior star Braeden Smith, who had to work for all 11 of his points against Auburn.

“What’s great about coaching this team is that Braeden is one of the best competitors, if not the best competitor, that I’ve ever had an opportunity to coach,” Seattle Prep head coach Mike Kelly said. “He’s loved by his teammates. His teammates might read that from me in the paper, and there is no jealousy, no angst about it.

“I personally think he’s the best player in the state. If we were take any other player on any other team that’s really good, our team, we’re not better. You take Braeden off our team, and we’re a whole different look. It doesn’t mean we don’t have players who do special things and play really hard, but that kid is something special.”

(All photos by Vince Miller)