The Union boys basketball team thrives on moments like these.
The Titans know how to win league championships, they know how to reach the Class 4A state basketball tournament annually, and they’re proven.
So it’s no surprise that Tuesday happened to be another game that players flourished amidst the packed Skyview gymnasium and rambunctious crowd in a 4A Greater St. Helens League battle featuring two of the state’s top-rated teams.
“We rise to the occasion,” said senior Ethan Smith, who finished with a team-best 23 points, “and rise to the level of our work ethic. “We’ve been preparing for these moments all season, all off-season. Now we get the chance to show if off.”
And the Titans, Class 4A’s lone undefeated team did in a 83-79 victory over the host Storm in a battle of the top 5-ranked RPI teams in 4A.
Smith went a perfect 4 of 4 at the free-throw line in the final 30 seconds as part of his team-high 23 that helped the Titans hold off a Storm team that rallied back trailing by 18 in the second half.
In a game that featured 10 first-half lead changes, Union (16-0, 4-0) seized control in the third quarter. In that eight-minute stretch, the Titans went 5 of 8 from 3-point range. Tanner Toolson’s 3 — his first of the second half — gave Union its largest lead at 18, 56-38.
Toolson is what coach Blake Conley described as the team’s X-factor. He finished Tuesday with 17 points — his season-high is 31. A year ago, he played junior varsity.
A newbie to atmospheres like Tuesday, Toolson took it all in stride.
“It was really fun,” he said. “I love playing in that.”
What isn’t a surprise, either, is Union’s 16-0 start, players say. After all, when you’re winners of seven straight league titles shared or outright, it comes with the territory. The Titans are Class 4A’s only undefeated team.
Sure, fresh faces in the lineup annually means new players stepping up, and the Titans have had that all season.
First, there’s players like Toolson. Next, there’s guys like Houston Combs who had 15 points and eight assists. Conley said he’s never had a point guard average more than 5 per game. Combs is at 7.5 per contest and the coach called Tuesday’s performance one of the best the guard’s had all season.
He helped orchestrate a 15-0 scoring run over 4 minutes of the third that gave Union its largest lead before the Storm began to rally. Union hit 5 of 8 3s in th third, accounting for half of their made 3s in the game.
Ball movement was working well, a big key for the Titans.
“Our ball movement was outstanding and that was our main thing,” Combs said. “… Our trust was just flowing. Everyone trusts every guys to make the next big shot.”
Shooting by Skyview’s Kyle Gruhler (22 points) and Jace Chatman (15) helped cut into the Union lead. Squeeky Johnson cut it to single digits at 73-64 then Skyview went on a 7-0 run over 2 minutes. Alex Schumacher finished with 24 to lead all scorers. His 3 with 1:07 left cut the Union lead to 76-74.
That’s as close as Skyview got; Union went 6 of 7 at the free-throw line the rest of the way.
But the Titans know nothing’s been settled yet. There’s still four games left in league play for both teams, including their Jan. 30 showdown in the regular-season finale on Union’s floor in a game that likely will settle the league title and top-seed to bi-districts.
Last season, Union snapped Skyview’s 17-game winning streak in the teams’ second-go around game that ultimately decided the co-league title between the teams. Union won the tiebreaker to earn the top-seed to bi-districts.
“There’s always guys who step up,” Combs said, “and that’s what’s going to take us far.”
