Mercer Island Boys Advance to KingCo Championship Game

head coach Gavin Cree warned his team that not many people would be in attendance for a 3 p.m. weekday game, so they would have to create their own energy.

It appears his message hit home.

Derek Newhoff scored 20 points and the Islanders advanced to the KingCo 3A/2A championship game with a 55-46 victory on Tuesday at Bellevue College.

Mercer Island began the game on a 17-0 run, holding Mount Si without a field goal for the first 8:35 of the game.

"Coach kept telling us we had to come out strong," Newhoff said. "There wasn't going to be a lot of people at a three o'clock game. We came out and brought it."

Mount Si got within six points with two minutes left in the game, but the Islanders sealed the win from the free throw line. 

"We brought great energy and we hit some shots," Cree said of the way his team played.

The Islanders were finally playing with a nearly complete lineup. Stars Quinn Sterling and Kaj Sherman recently returned from injury and Newhoff credited their return with a surge in the teams confidence.

"We finally got our two best players from last year back," Newhoff said. "Our energy has just increased since then. We're a better team now."

The depth that has developed for Mercer Island over the course of the year was on display as the Islanders fought off a second-half charge from the Wildcats. Mount Si fought back from a 34-20 halftime deficit to get the deficit down to single-digits. But the Islanders responded, with six different players scoring in the final period.

"We just have a lot of options," Cree said of his team. "We have some guys on our bench tonight that didn't play very much, who have had 20-point games for us this year."

The Islanders will play the winner of the Bellevue/Lake Washington match-up, taking place at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday.