MORTON — It was supposed to be a tight matchup between the defending state champions and the shiny new favorites in the Central 2B League.
Instead, Zach Walton stole the show and the Timberwolves blew out Toledo, 72-50, to remind the rest of the league — and, perhaps, state — that the league championship and gold ball trophy are still firmly rooted in East Lewis County.
Walton scored 32 points, Kaleb Poquette added 20, and Morton-White Pass shot 53 percent from the floor and, from the second quarter on, was never in serious danger of maring its undefeated record.
“We came out with a lot of intensity. We really wanted this game,” Walton said. “We were getting jacked up in the locker room. They’re picked to win, and we wanted to go out and make a statement.”
The 6-foot-5 senior did just about everything to back it up.
“I don’t know if I’ve seen anybody like him,” Toledo coach Grady Fallon said. “He looks like he plays just in fourth gear and not fifth, because he can. He’s so athletic, and has a whole lot of tools.”
Walton knocked down a pair of 3-pointers in the first quarter, scored on pull-up jumpers, fastbreaks and drives to the hoop, and exited the game to a raucous applause with 25 seconds left to play.
“I’ve never seen him play that good, honestly,” said Toledo forward Grant McEwen, who has played summer ball with Walton and was given the thankless task of covering him for most of Saturday’s game. “It was a fun matchup. I liked guarding him, but he had an outstanding game. There was no stopping him.”
The Timberwolves had a more balanced, senior-heavy team last season for their state title run, with no shortage of scoring options. Walton and Poquette are the main options on this year’s team, and MWP coach Tony Gillispie said that early in the season Walton was still giving the ball up a little more than the coach would have liked.
“Tonight I pulled him aside, and told him, ‘You have to be aggressive tonight with the ball. You have to be assertive,’” Gillispie said. “And boy, was he. He just stepped up to the challenge and was absolutely fabulous.”
Toledo’s Brent Wood tossed in a running 35-footer as the first-quarter buzzer sounded to cut MWP’s lead to 16-13, and Connor Vermilyea knocked down a 3 midway through the second that kept the lead at just 3 points. Walton scored the next 7 points, and Poquette cashed in a 3-pointer late in the second that pushed the advantage to 13 points.
“They came out hot. They shot really well in the first half, and I thought our defense was good in the beginning,” McEwen said. “We contested every shot, but definitely, they made some tough shots.”
The Timberwolves stayed hot after halftime, going 10 of 17 from the floor to lead 57-42 by the start of the fourth frame.
“We got really pumped up for this game,” Poquette said. “They’re really good, coached really well, and they’re second in our league, I think, or first — around there — and we came out and made a statement tonight. I think we rose to the occasion.”
The win pushed MWP to 4-0 — all league games — this season, tied with Adna for first in the C2BL standings.
“It’s basically a measuring stick. There’s a lot of ball left, and it’s an early-season matchup, but if you have any inklings of trying to win a league championship, you have to win on your home floor,” Gillispie said. “We know we’ll have another battle down there, and it’s going to be different, but you have to take care of business here, and I thought we did that.”
Forrest Wallace hit four of his five 3-pointers in the second half and led Toledo (1-1) with 17 points.
The Indians, who dropped down to the 2B ranks this school year, were playing their second game in as many nights after starting the season late due to an extended playoff run by the football team, and a postponed game Thursday night due to issues with the wind storm.
“We’re always excited to play the best team, and see where we are, but they’re good,” Fallon said. “We talked about it being early. It gives us some focus and motivation and direction. We know this league is not easy.”
McEwen added 5 points and eight rebounds for Toledo, while Wood finished with 8 points.
The Indians will host Onalaska on Tuesday.
The Indians will host Onalaska on Tuesday. Morton-White Pass will play at Wahkiakum the same night.
Notes: Toledo’s JV won, 56-53. … Morton-White Pass outrebounded Toledo, 34-19. Walton led MWP with eight boards. … The Timberwolves have now won 31 games in a row, dating back to a consolation round loss to Northwest Christian (Colbert) in the 2013 State 2B tournament. … The game didn’t end until 9:59 p.m. Saturday night, after a long JV boys game and an overtime varsity girls game pushed the opening tipoff back to nearly 8:45 p.m.
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Lewis County Sports 