Renton High School’s boys basketball team stood tall in the face of adversity as they claimed their second KingCo championship in the last three years in an emphatic 72-62 win over Foster on Feb. 6 at Lindbergh High School.
“We finally put together a full game, the fullest game we have played. From beginning to end we were sound. We competed and took care of the ball pretty well,” head coach Rashaad Powell said following the win. “We had some lapses, that is to be expected. We aren’t going to play perfect basketball. But they rose to the occasion.”
Renton entered as the No. 1 seed and had yet to play Foster this season, but had lost both meetings in the playoffs against the Bulldogs a season ago.
But Renton showed the depth of their roster and talent all night against the Bulldogs.
The Redhawks entered what was supposed to be a neutral site Friday night, which quickly turned to a pro-Foster or more-so anti-Renton crowd. But that seemed not to bother the veteran Redhawk group that had been battle tested all season.
“It felt good to get our get back. Last year they beat us and beat us pretty disrespectfully, but I feel like at the end of the game we finished with class. Then we turned up after in the locker room,” Juice White-Kelley said after the game.
Renton had undoubtedly the toughest schedule of any boys basketball team in the state of Washington. Many claim to play tough schedules, but according to the Redhawks’ opponents win percentage of a staggering .684, Renton took the top spot among all six classifications in Washington state.
For years, due to the lack of competition in what was the KingCo 2A division, Powell would seek out tough non-league opponents. Now that there is a tiered system in KingCo play, along with non-league challenges, to call them battle tested might be underselling how tough the schedule actually was.
“We have been battle tested against high level teams. We have played the No. 6 team in the country and No. 1 team in 3A, No. 1 team in 4A, the top 10 such and such. Everything that has happened before doesn’t matter. It only matters from an experience standpoint. We draw from that,” Powell said.
Jayden Holifield drives to the basket for Renton against Foster. Ben Ray / The Reporter
Renton led 16-9 at the end of the first quarter and really after Foster took a 4-2 lead, Renton found their separation, and it came in the form of a lot of Sudan Luok in the first quarter.
But the story of the game was the utter dominance from Juice White-Kelley. The senior finished with 26 points, leading the way for Renton, but his demeanor on the court is unique in modern basketball. He never gets too high or too low, but one thing stays consistent: he is going to make shots.
White-Kelley might be the most mild-mannered player on a team that plays with fire. Isaac Elegan, Sudan Luok and to some extent Nate Omar bring the fire, while White-Kelley brings the ice.
At halftime, Renton led 38-26 and defensively was really limiting what Foster could achieve on offense. That was a credit to the effort and execution of getting in the passing lanes, drawing charges, along with out-rebounding the Bulldogs in the first half.
Luok was sidelined the entire third quarter as he dealt with an injury, meaning the flow of the offense heavily relied on White-Kelley. What did he do? He had his best quarter of the game. White-Kelley totalled 11 points in the third quarter after nine in the second quarter.
“The only person that was surprised about that was Juice, himself. We all know he has immense potential and talent, but it is a matter of him showing up on a nightly basis. It’s a confidence thing because he didn’t grow up in that role to be ‘the guy.’ Shifting over from the role guy to doing the heavy lifting is an adjustment if you don’t have that kind of confidence,” Powell said.
Renton led by as many as 14 points in the third quarter (50-36) before Foster cut the lead to just six at the end of the third quarter.
“It was a lot of team led conversations about what needed to happen. They made the plays and made the shots and didn’t continue to implode. It was great to see that from a growth standpoint,” Powell said
In the fourth quarter, the Redhawks got a steady contribution from Nate Omar, who had six of his 12 points in the fourth. Omar is the spark that Powell can go to on the bench, and Omar seems to always be in the right spot at the right time.
“It’s what he has been capable of. I’m not surprised about any of these things because this is what we have been counting on,” Powell said. “He’s active, finishing plays and his little chip-in baskets, those things help. He’s capable and athletic and plays with high energy.”
Nate Omar holds the basketball for Renton against Foster. Ben Ray / The Reporter
Renton now heads to the District 2 tournament where they are the No. 2 seed, due to Nathan Hale being the automatic number one seed as the Metro regular season leader.
The Redhawks take on Evergreen (9-10) and can play Lindbergh and Foster en route to the district tournament title. But if one thing is for certain, Renton is playing their best brand of basketball right at the right time.
“If everybody shows up and everybody locks in, it is going to be very hard to beat us,” White-Kelley said.
