Before the season started, the King’s Way boys gathered for a team get-together at assistant coach Kal Bay’s house, where they looked to set their goals for the season.
Junior Khalfani Cason — who along with his brothers had just transferred from Skyview, Kobi Cason and Kefentse Cason — spoke up.
“I said, ‘get to state,’ ” Cason said. “Everyone wanted the same goal. We were buying into it.”
From the outside, it may have seemed far-fetched for a team that was replacing 12 seniors and was comprised of majority underclassmen
Not to Cason. Nor the rest of the team, for that matter.
Leave it to the No. 15 seed Knights (14-10) to be the last 1A boys team in Clark County standing ahead of the 1A Hardwood Classic in Yakima starting Wednesday with a 10:30 a.m. loser-out matchup against No. 7 Cascade Christian of Puyallup.
Among the Knights’ lofty self-imposed expectations were winning the 1A Trico League, winning districts and making it to the Yakima Sun Dome.
Despite missing on the first two, King’s Way achieved its third as the program returns for its fourth straight trip to state. It’s a feat made possible by a 71-67 overtime win over No. 10 Wahluke on Saturday, in which Khalfani, King’s Way’s leading scorer with 35 points, hit a pull-up game-tying 3-pointer at the buzzer to force overtime.
It was a shot that Khalfani has taken thousands of times by himself in a gym. And it was a moment that the junior has been working toward ever since he started playing for King’s Way as a freshman, when Khalfani and Kafentse played both JV and varsity for King’s Way.
He started working as hard as he could in anticipation for his moment to come, asking coaches to be let into the school gym before the school was open, and when that didn’t work, he befriended a lunch attendant to let him in the school.
“She’d let me in at times at five in the morning,” Khalfani said.
Khalfani’s varsity moment was put on hold another year when the brothers decided to transfer to Skyview, and were ineligible to play varsity because of transfer rules.
He and his two brothers — twin Kefentse “Bubba” Cason and younger brother Kobi Cason, a sophomore — transferred to King’s Way from Skyview this summer after they moved to Portland.
Khalfani was initially skeptical. After he and his brothers moved to Portland, and had to transfer because they were outside the Skyview boundaries, they had the option to attend Parkrose High School, or return to King’s Way, where Khalfani and Kafentse attended their freshman year.
Kafentse and Kobi were sold on King’s Way. Khalfani was a bit hesitant, but caved at the prospect of playing with his brothers.
“I’m glad I stayed,” Khalfani said.
Initially, he felt pressure coming back to King’s Way. It motivated him to do whatever it took to improve.
“I knew it was going to be my floor, and I knew I’d have to show up,” Khalfani said.
The Knights finished second in 1A Trico League after going 7-3, losing to La Center twice and once to Seton Catholic. They advanced to the district quarterfinals, where they lost to La Center, 76-65.
But now, they’re the last 1A boys team standing.
Part of the mentality that helped the Knights remain alive up to this point in the postseason is their high expectations of themselves. Throughout the season they’ve used their perceived disadvantages as motivators.
Young. Inexperienced. Unproven. Only two players on the roster had seen the floor in a varsity game last season.
When he saw his final roster before the season, “I had no idea what was going to happen,” King’s Way coach Daven Harmeling said. “So there’s really nobody on our roster who played meaningful minutes last year.”
It’s fitting, too, that Kefentse Cason, a 5-foot-8 junior, is among the team’s leading rebounders. Freshman Bryce Dodge is the Knights’ tallest player at 6-foot-2.
“Age is not a factor,” Kafentse said. “It’s just how big your heart is. We just play together.”
“We never ever, ever talk about anyone’s age,” Harmeling said. “It’s completely irrelevant to us. … We have not one time mentioned age or not being physically strong. As a coach I understand that next year the guys are going to be better, but I don’t ever bring that up to them because it’s nothing they can control now. We don’t try to layer in any excuses for them.”
The excuses certainly won’t start in Yakima.
“The expectation is to win now,” Harmeling said.
Other county teams
La Center girls: The La Center girls had not lost since Dec. 15 before dropping its regional game to La Salle, 47-42 last weekend. Furthermore, the Wildcats have gone mostly unchallenged this season, winning by an average of 30 points per game. The No. 6 Wildcats lost in the quarterfinals of last year’s state tournament, and return all five starters from that quad. But they will be tested on Wednesday when they play No. 14 Freeman at 3:45 p.m. Taylor Stephens takes the ball up and is La Center’s leading scorer, and Taylor Mills is the team’s primary post presence and rebounder.
Columbia River boys: Columbia River isn’t necessarily on a hot streak heading into the 2A state tournament, where the No. 7 Chieftains face No. 10 Fife in a loser-out at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, but don’t count them out. After finishing the regular season tied for first in the 2A Greater St. Helens League, the Chieftains made it to the district finals, where they lost to Mark Morris–the very team they shared the league title with–on the last possession. The Chieftains lost in the regional game 75-69 to No. 2 Selah. River is led by 6-foot-2 senior guard Jacob Hjort, who can score in a variety of ways. So can Nasseen Gutierrez, the Chieftains’ 6-foot-6 forward and primary post target.
Washougal girls: The Washougal girls are back at state for the third season in a row, where they will face Lynden in a loser-out game at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday. Led by two-time 2A Greater St. Helen’s league MVP Beyonce Bea, the Panthers won the league championship and won the district championship, despite losing in the opening game of the district tournament. Last season, Bea led Washougal to the quarterfinals where it lost 58-55 to Burlington-Edison. The Panthers are led by first-year head coach Britney Knotts.
