Going into their match-up with Mountlake Terrace Friday night, the Meadowdale boys basketball team was 9-1 when scoring 52 points or more in a game, 0-8 when scoring less than 52. That patterned continued at Mountlake Terrace High School as the Mavs, hoping for more, fell well short of their magic number and succumbed to the Hawks 49-41.

“It’s tough to win with 41 points,” Meadowdale’s Coach Andy Streit said.

The loss ended the Mavs’ regular season and the team must now wait to see if their 5-7 Wesco 3A South record will be good enough to get them into the 3A District 1 Tournament that starts on Feb. 14.

For Mountlake Terrace, the win kept them alive for a district tourney berth, but they must win their regular season finale on Tuesday, Feb. 10, at Shorewood to possibly get a spot in the tournament.

The Mountlake Terrace victory over Meadowdale didn’t come easy; the Hawks trailed at halftime 22-16 after scoring just one point on a Justin Hopkins free throw in the second quarter. But a big 11-0 run over a 4:40 stretch of the third quarter pushed Mountlake Terrace into a lead, then sharp free throw shooting during the game’s final 36.6 seconds secured the win.

The Mavericks edged ahead 33-32 with 5:50 left in the game after two Charlie White free throws, but it was the last time the squad would hold the lead. Mountlake Terrace countered with points late by juniors Shimron Masih, Gabe Altenberger and forward Derek Anyimah, who scored eight of his team-leading 17 points in the fourth quarter.

Anyimah was forced to come off the bench in the game due to Mountlake Terrace coach Nalin Sood’s long-standing tradition of starting his seniors in their final home game of their careers. With seniors Hopkins, Ali Shah and Ryan Lacasse all getting the starting nods, Aniymah was in an unfamiliar position watching from the sidelines at the opening tipoff.

“I’m not use to starting on the bench, but I was happy for Ryan,” Anyimah said. “He scored those two points, and that was a big inspiration for me. He’s a captain of our team and a great leader.

Lacasse had been listed as out for the season due to a shoulder injury, but told the coaching staff he wanted to start in his last home game. The 6-1 senior played one minute and hit his only shot, a short jumper in the lane.

While Lacasse was the team inspiration at the start of the game, it was the nerve of Hawk free-throw shooters at the end that sealed the victory for Mountlake Terrace. Anyimah, Masih and Altenberger combined for seven converted free throws in eight attempts in the final :36.6 to keep the Mavs at arms’ length.

Practicing free throw shooting is a priority for the Hawk coaching staff. “One thing we try to do is 25 to 50 free throws every practice,” Sood said. “Every day the kids are watching free throws on a video tape. So we hope it pays off in crunch time because that’s when it’s most important. Good job shooting free throws and that, maybe, gave us a little bit of separation there.”

It was also the defensive effort by Mountlake Terrace that proved to be pivotal Friday night. “They play excellent defense,” Streit said of the Hawks. “We knew it was going to be a struggle. We needed to make our open looks and we left a few out there.”

Maverick senior Charlie White was held to his season average of 11 points despite getting plenty of opportunities low in the paint. “He’s a handful; he’s a good player,” Sood said of the Meadowdale post player. “We’ve seen him for four years and you’ve got to work and work and work and try to play good defense against him.”

“He’s such a strong low-post player,” Sood added. “It’s a game of position. I thought Shimroh (Masih) did a good job trying to get in front of him. It worked out for us.”

The eight teams to battle in the 3A District 1 Tournament won’t be known until after games on Feb. 10 are completed, so Streit plans on keeping his squad in the gym practicing in hopes of making the cut. “We’re not out of it yet,” he said. “We would like to be in control of our fate, but we’re going to keep plugging along until we’re done for sure.”

For Mountlake Terrace, Friday’s win has kept them in the hunt for the postseason, a fact that Sood made clear to his team. “All I can tell them is that they’ve put themselves in an opportunity to get to District,” he said. “A lot of people wouldn’t have thought that a couple of weeks ago, but they kept fighting.”

Prep Boys Basketball: Meadowdale at Mountlake Terrace

Meadowdale           13       9           6        13       —         41
Mountlake Terrace  15       1          16       17       —         49

Meadowdale individual scoring: Charlie White 11, Reid Wilson 11, Griffin Over 5, Harrison White 5, Caleb Tingstad 4, Aidan O’Neill 3, Nathan Heilpap 2, Kenley Ackerman, Malik Braxton, Lee Bruemmer, Chiagozie Ezeokeke

Mountlake Terrace individual scoring: Derek Anyimah 17, Gabe Altenberger 14, Daniel Johnson 8, Shimron Masin 7, Ryan Lacasse 2, Justin Hopkins 1, Ali Shah, Joey Gardner, Gabriel Powter

Records: Meadowdale 5-7 in Wesco 3A South, 9-10 overall; Mountlake Terrace 4-7, 6-13

Meadowdale next game: first round game in 3A District 1 Tournament (if qualified), Feb. 14

Mountlake Terrace next game: vs. Shorewood, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 7:15 p.m. at Shorewood High School

— By Doug Petrowski