HS Boys Basketball: Bearcats Beat Bobcats, Move into Playoff Spot in EvCo 2A

1/29/26

(Chehalis, WA) Back on January 13th, the Aberdeen Bobcats snapped an eight-game losing streak against the WF West Bearcats and beat WF West for the first time since 2021, 62-51. Now, on January 29th the two teams square off again with playoff implications as both look to get the #3 seed and host a pigtail game with the GSHL #6 but both looking to avoid being the odd team out of the playoffs with Centralia lurking as well.

Aberdeen entered the Thursday night showdown 8-8 overall and 3-4 in league play after four consecutive league losses since the win over the Bearcats. Aberdeen’s only win in that stretch came on the road at Rochester on January 17th. A win for Aberdeen would lock up a spot in a pigtail game at home for the Bobcats while a loss would but them on the brink of missing the postseason with games against Tumwater and Black Hills next week.

WF West came in with a 5-12 overall record and 2-5 in league play. After starting EvCo 2A play 0-3, the Bearcats have played .500 ball since with the two losses coming to the top two teams in the league in Tumwater and Black Hills. A win for the Bearcats would move them into a tie with Aberdeen and potentially Centralia meaning three teams would be tied for just two playoff spots heading into the final week of the season.

WF West 65, Aberdeen 50

Neither offense was strong in the opening quarter as the fast-paced play did not necessarily help out either side. Blake Hampton was the only player to get going early which gave WF West the upper hand out of the gate as he poured in five quick points. Gabe Matthews picked up a couple early fouls for Aberdeen which made them have to change their rotations on the fly but shots weren’t dropping in the first eight minutes. After a quarter of play, WF West held an 11-5 lead over Aberdeen.

Whatever head coach Brandyn Brooks told the Bobcats between quarters seemed to work as the offense exploded in the 2nd quarter. It had a lot to do with Jhacob Quezada knocking down everything in sight whether it be a three from behind the arc or a circus shot for an and-one opportunity. WF West was on their own nice run behind Blake Hampton and Wyatt Hoffman hit a three as the Bearcats opened up their lead. However, turnovers plagued WF West in the final minute and Aberdeen stormed back to take their first lead of the game at 27-25 which would be the score at halftime.

WF West quickly tied the game back up to begin the 3rd quarter as Hayden Rooney got aggressive on offense. Wyatt Hoffman began to really get going which doesn’t necessarily mean scoring the ball as he facilitated the offense at a very high level. Fox Rogerson started to get his offense going with seven points in the quarter and some high level defense. Race Rockey began to establish a paint presence for the Bearcats as they outscored Aberdeen 20-11 in the quarter to take a 45-38 lead into the final quarter.

It looked as if WF West would run away as Hoffman and Rogerson continued to roll for the Bearcats down the stretch. WF West pushed their lead up to 12 and things looked bleak for Aberdeen. However, a couple of made shots and constant pressure led to more Bearcat turnovers and Aberdeen stormed back with a 9-0 run capped of by a Jhacob Quezada three. Justin Howard and Isaac Garcia became complimentary scorers as Aberdeen cut the score to 51-48. After not scoring for most of the second half, Blake Hampton reinserted himself into the scoring column with a bucket to stop the run. Hoffman scored again and a steal and easy lay-up for Rogerson answered the Bobcat run for WF West. Free throws down the stretched extended the WF West lead as they pulled away for a 65-50 win over Aberdeen finishing the game on a 14-2 run.

Our Thorbeckes MVP of the game went to Blake Hampton for WF West. The sophomore was the only player out of the gate to get into a groove offensively and scored 12 of his 16 points in the first half. Although he had a quiet second half, Hampton did score a big bucket late to slow down the Bobcats comeback bid while hitting a couple of free throws as well to ice the game away.

The win moves WF West to 6-12 overall and 3-5 in EvCo 2A play heading into the final week of the regular season. The Bearcats also hold the #3 seed now out of the league and will visit Shelton on Tuesday at 7pm with a chance to clinch a playoff berth with a win and a Centralia loss. Aberdeen falls to 8-9 overall and 3-5 in league play and they too can clinch a playoff spot in their next league game on Tuesday at Tumwater. They will play their final non-league game of the season on Saturday at 1:30pm when they host Hoquiam in a rivalry matchup.

Scoring

Aberdeen: Jhacob Quezada 21, Isaac Garcia 10, Justin Howard 8, Gabe Matthews 4, Jayden Gladson 4, Ben Birch 2, Dylan Carroll 1

WF West: Blake Hampton 16, Wyatt Hoffman 12, Fox Rogerson 12, Race Rockey 8, Hayden Rooney 7, Gage Grisham 5, Luke McMillan 3, Colin Elder 2

Link to watch full game replay on the NFHS Network (subscription required)