Olympic League standings (as of Dec. 10)

Team Lg. Over.

Sequim 2-0 4-1

North Kitsap 1-0 3-1

Port Angeles 1-0 2-1

Bremerton 1-1 2-3

Olympic 1-1 2-3

North Mason 0-2 3-4

Kingston 0-2 0-4

With raucous crowds on both sides of the gym, it was hard to not mistake Monday night’s non-league clash for a key league game with playoff implications.

“I wish our athletic directors would get together and do these (doubleheaders) more,” Sequim coach Greg Glasser said, following the Wolves’ 72-70 win over 1A Forks on Dec. 10.

“It was kind of that PA (Port Angeles) atmosphere. The whole town of Forks was out there.”

See more photos from the game here.

The visiting crowd saw its Spartans nearly pull off a win against their 2A counterparts in what became a seesaw battle late in the second half. Down 70-68, Sequim guard Kyler Rollness found a streaking Joey Oliver for a basket and foul to put Sequim up 71-70. The Wolves’ defense clamped down after that, forcing two Spartan turnovers.

The Wolves missed three of four free throws late, but the Wolves deflected a last-second heave by Seth Johnson to ensure the win.

Nate Despain paced the Wolves with a strong all-around game of 22 points, nine rebounds, five assists and three steals.

Oliver added 21 points on nine-of-15 shooting.

Sequim looked to run away with the game early, jumping out of the gate with leads of 11-0 and 20-8.

“That’s who we are; we like to push the tempo,” Glasser said.

“(But) we gave up some easy baskets when we trapped.”

The Spartans chipped away at the SHS lead before the first half was done, sparked by an eight-point outburst by Joseph Reaume and sharp shooting by Johnson. Between the first and second quarters, Forks went on a 27-8 run to close the half up 35-28.

Oliver kept the Wolves close with an eight-point third quarter, but the Spartans still held a 52-47 lead heading into the fourth.

In the final quarter, a pair of Michael Young baskets and two free throws from Despain knotted the game at 55-55 with 6:14 left.

Sequim edged in front 64-61 off a Despain basket with 2:50 remaining before Forks’ Cort Prose hit the first of his three 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions — the final giving Forks a 70-68 lead with 1:26 on the clock.

“He gets a little confidence (and he gets hot),” Glasser said of the Forks forward. “He’s got a quick release.”

That set up Oliver’s three-point play, and Sequim held on for the win.

“Joey’s been big for us; he attacks the basket and stretches the floor because he can shoot it,” Glasser said.

Erik Christiansen added 10 points for Sequim while Rollness, Young and Riley Cowan had five each.

Johnson led the Spartans with 16 points while Prose, Reaume and Braton Armas had 12 points apiece.

Sequim hadn’t faced the Spartans since November of 2007, Glasser’s first year coaching the Sequim boys.

“Coach (Rick) Gooding gets every ounce out of those guys,” Glasser said. “They work extremely hard.”

Sequim sweeps league openers

Sequim’s Wolves didn’t let a first quarter deficit get them down in a big win on the road at Kingston on Dec. 5 to open their 2018-2019 Olympic League campaign.

Despain led four Sequim players in double figures with 14 points in a 62-45 win over the host Buccaneers on Dec. 5.

Christiansen had 12, Keeshawn Whitney had 11 and Rollness added 10 in the Sequim win. Cowan chipped in five points, plus team highs in rebounds (six) and steals (four).

Kingston, who led 18-14 after one frame before Sequim retook a one-point lead (24-23) by halftime, got 12 points apiece from Isaiah Calloway and Jack Hermanson.

Two days later, Sequim used offensive balance and a tough third quarter to top North Mason’s Bulldogs, 74-60.

Oliver led Sequim with 17 points, while Cowan scored 16. Despain and Christiansen contributed 10 points each.

The game was high-scoring in the first half, with the Wolves taking a 46-39 lead into the break. Sequim then clamped down on defense in the third.

“We started off kind of flat defensively. The kids made an adjustment in the third,” Glasser said.

Sequim outscored North Mason 16-5 in the third quarter to take a commanding 62-44 lead into the fourth.

Looking ahead

Sequim was slated to play on Dec. 11 at Bremerton, the Wolves’ fourth game in seven days — results were not available at press time.

The Wolves make a number of stops in Silverdale in the coming days including a Dec. 14 game at Klahowya, a Dec. 19 match-up with 2B foe Crosspoint, and a Dec. 21 game at Olympic.

Sequim hosts North Kitsap on Dec. 18.

The Wolves play at Port Townsend’s Crush the Slush tournament over the winter break, taking on Ferndale and the host Redhawks on successive days. The Wolves hit the court against 3A Ferndale at 10:25 a.m. on Dec. 28, and 1A Port Townsend at 8:25 p.m. on Dec. 29.