On Jan. 16, the Issaquah JV Boys’ Basketball team emerged on top at Issaquah High School as it beat Redmond High School with a final score of 57-50. The game unfolded with intense plays and physicality, keeping the spectators glued to their seats.
The Issaquah Eagles came out strong with a starting lineup featuring #2 freshman Cade Sunderland, #3 sophomore Ian Nakayama, #4 sophomore Alex Kirkpatrick, #5 sophomore Trey Gilbert, and #23 sophomore Nathan Fernando. Issaquah won the ball toss at the beginning of the first quarter and did not take too long to score early points. Fernando was quick to snatch the ball and execute a perfect layup, making it 2-0 early in the game. Adding to that, another 3-pointer by Gilbert from the right corner and a 2 pointer off the counterattack brought the score up to 7-0 with Issaquah in the lead, and 15-6 at the end of the quarter.
The second quarter was more balanced as Redmond sank a three pointer from behind the arc with 57.1 seconds to go and Fernando added another 3-pointer from the right corner 23 seconds later. Issaquah held the lead with some quick plays showing accurate passes before their last swift offensive result in a 2-point layup that saw themselves leading at 27-21.
As the game ensued for the third quarter, things could only get better for Redmond behind seven points. Arguably one of the memorable shots from Redmond was from a majestic 3-pointer at the corner that wonderfully thrilled the crowd. As Coach Grant McEwin put it, “The competition was tough, and Redmond came to play. It was a really well-fought match by both teams.” However, at the end of the fray, the Eagles rose to the occasion ending the third quarter 48-31.
The gap was 17 points between Redmond and Issaquah going into the fourth quarter. Under pressure, Issaquah ultimately sealed the game with some incredible free throw performances. Kirkpatrick nailed four critical free throws at separate times followed by Gilbert burying two more to create the final 57-50. In the post-match interview, Gilbert said, “The team played awesome. We kept to the words given from our coach, communicated well all over the court and got a win. We were nice to each other and honestly, we will do only better in the future games during this season.”
