Mercer Island Basketball to Face Timberline for Spot at State

The Mercer Island High School basketball team will play Timberline High School Saturday in a loser out game with the winner advancing to the state championships.

The game is at 4 p.m. at Mt. Tahoma High School, 4634 S 74TH ST, Tacoma, 98409. The game will be broadcast on the radio on KMIH at 88.9 FM/94.5 FM, according to the WIAA.

The Mercer Island Boys Basketball website posted the following information about the Islanders post-season:

The Islanders went back to basics in their victory Saturday over Franklin to secure the Sea-King third seed in next weekend's State Regional. MI used strong defense, solid rebounding and great movement on offense to earn the victory over a talented Quakers squad. 

Coach Cree was pleased with his team's execution, "This was a well-executed game plan by our kids. We generally kept Franklin in front of us and made them earn their buckets. We also played a really clean game offensively for the most part. Solid defense and taking care of the basketball is a great formula for us."

The offensive attack was led by Nick Nordale and Joe Rasmussen, with Kaleb Warner playing with foul trouble for much of the second half. "Our captains carried us tonight. Joe was phenomenal all over the floor on both ends and Nick Nordale did everything out there for us - handling the ball and scoring," added Coach Cree. Nordale ended up with 23 points and Rasmussen with 21. Espen Platou, Jake Stenberg and Max Tilden finished with 4 points each while Jake Shaddle and Kaleb Warner each chipped in 3.

The Islanders next play Saturday at 4 p.m. in the State Regional at Mt. Tahoma High School in a loser out game with the winner advancing to State. MI plays Timberline High School, the 2nd seeded team out of the West Central District.