Close call averted for all-star victory

On Sunday, Mountain View’s Taylor Drey and his All-Star teammates survived the Les Schwab Roundball Shootout boys’ game as the Black team defeated the White, 103-101.

Drey earned the Most Valuable Player award — an honor named as ‘the Star of Stars’ — for his 22-point and eight-assist effort in the game that featured a mixed squad of several standout local players. His Black-squad teammate, Isaiah Smith of Columbia River, not only won the pregame slam dunk contest but also led all scorers with 29 points.

“We couldn’t have done it without Isaiah,” Drey said.

Though the Black team never trailed and even commanded the first half with a 19-point lead, the White team recovered behind the 3-point shooting of Heritage’s Tim Hergert (22 points) and Hockinson’s Wyatt Yearout (18).

Through the second half, the White team pulled within seven points four times, but the Black squad answered each rally to build the lead back to double figures. However, during one final push, Yearout drilled a triple to make the score 103-98 with 1:31 remaining in the game.

Smith echoed Drey: “I think we had it. It might have been a little too close, but we felt confident the whole time.”

When Smith grabbed the final rebound — a missed baseline jump shot by Union’s Tyler Copp that would have tied the score in the final seconds — the Black team had averted the close call.

During halftime, Keegan Liebelt of Skyview won the boys’ 3-point contest.

BLACK TEAM 103, WHITE TEAM 101

WHITE — Miles Luke 11, Tyler Copp 14, Wyatt Yearout 18, Michael McElroy 3, Tim Hergert 22, AJ Meyers 25, Luke DuChesne 8. Totals 40-96 9-41 101.

BLACK — Keegan Liebelt 7, Taylor Drey 22, Preston Brooks 22, Matt DeLisle 10, Isaiah Smith 29, Shane McCauley 4, Aaron Deister 8. Totals 42-88 11-39 103.