Both the Yelm boys and girls basketball programs entered their games on Wednesday, Jan. 25, with just four games remaining in the regular season.
The two teams have had a different outlook to the 2022-23 season, as the boys fight for a playoff spot and the girls try to potentially secure the “spoiler” role down the stretch.
The boys entered the game against the Capital Cougars on Wednesday, Jan. 25, in a three-way tie for the final two South Sound Conference playoff spots. The conference takes the top five teams in the league to districts.
The matchup against Capital was a big game for both teams, as playoff implications were on the line. The last time Yelm and Capital played against each other was on Dec. 16, where Yelm won 63-62.
Though the results were different this time around, the matchup lived up to the hype as it went down to the wire. Capital defeated the Tornados 70-66 to move ahead of Yelm in the conference standings.
Senior Trevontay Smith scored 26 points on the night for Yelm. The electric guard also collected six rebounds, dished out five assists, and had one steal.
Following the game against Capital, the Yelm boys held its final home game of the season as they hosted the North Thurston Rams on senior night. The Rams are currently 10-2 in the South Sound Conference and are tied for second in the league standings with Gig Harbor.
On senior night, the Tornados celebrated Smith, Aden Schaler, Isaiah Harris and Alex Hubbard, who all played their final high school home game.
North Thurston’s offense was on point all night, scoring 74 against the Tornados. Smith had a strong showing in his final home game as he scored 31 points and added three assists. His scoring outburst was the majority of Yelm’s offense, who lost the game, 74-55, to the Rams.
The next two games for the boys are must wins if they want to keep their postseason chances alive. They will hit the road twice as they play at Central Kitsap and River Ridge to close out the regular season. Central Kitsap and River Ridge sit at the bottom of the SSC standings, with the Cougars at 2-10 in SSC play and the Hawks sitting 0-12.
For the ladies, they hosted Capital on Wednesday, Jan. 25, in a close contest that ultimately went the way of the Cougars. Yelm’s offense managed to score 40 points, but the Cougar offense outlasted the Tornados by scoring 45 points.
After a 45-40 loss to Capital, Yelm hit the road and traveled to Lacey to take on the North Thurston Rams in their third to last game of the season.
Much like the boys game, Thurston’s offense came to play as they scored 51 points in the first half. The Rams’ defense was dominant as well, allowing just nine first half points and a total of 19 throughout the game.
North Thurston defeated the Yelm girls team, 58-19.
The girls will play their final two games of the season, both at home, on Monday, Jan. 30 and Thursday, Feb. 2. The first matchup was against the Capital Cougars and their final matchup is against the River Ridge Hawks.
