Eisenhower's Brandon Johnson leads the charge down the court after scoring in the fourth quarter against Davis on Monday in the Tourneytown.com Shootout. Ike won the Big Nine League contest 61-52.   JEFF HALLER/Yakima Herald-Republic

Ike stands over Davis
in 61-52 Big 9 victory

Loofburrow, Branden Johnson lead Cadets

By SCOTT SPRUILL
YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC

After days of talking about it, Branden Johnson and Jack Loofburrow didn’t need to say the words anymore. They knew what had to be done.

Own the boards, they demanded of each other.

Only one shot allowed, they insisted.

It’s got to get done and it’s on us.

Sufficiently fired up and laser-focused on their task, Eisenhower’s 6-foot-8 and 6-7 tandem of Johnson and Loofburrow did indeed wipe the glass clean and lead the Cadets to a 61-52 victory over Davis before a crowd of more than 4,500 in the nightcap to Monday’s Tourneytown.com Shootout.

Johnson was a relentless force, never tiring in the hectic, fast-paced game, and his reward was a Shootout-record 17 rebounds, 14 of them defensive. Loofburrow got most of what Johnson didn’t, hauling down nine rebounds.

“All week me and Jack kept saying, ‘Own the boards,’” said Johnson, who helped the Cadets snap a four-game losing streak to their city rival. “If we do that, we’re tough. And giving up only one shot was a big deal, too. Give a team like Davis two shots and they’ll make it.”

Eisenhower's Branden Johnson, left, and Davis' Humberto Perez, right, battle for the ball on Monday at the SunDome.   JEFF HALLER/Yakima Herald-Republic View all photos for this story.

Johnson racked up 10 rebounds by halftime as Ike broke out to a 34-22 lead and he broke the previous Shootout record in the third quarter.

“What great focus the kids had,” praised Ike coach Pat Fitterer. “They kept their emotions under wraps as best they could and played a smart game. We had a great start and held off (Davis) every time they made a run.”

For as much emphasis as Ike’s twin towers put on rebounding, don’t think they overlooked scoring. They did just fine there, too.

Loofburrow connected on 8 of 16 shots for a team-high 16 points, and Johnson popped in 15 points, including a 3-pointer.

If it had been just the big guys, the Cadets may have had trouble sustaining the effort but senior guard Nate Gipson fired in three 3-pointers in the first half to stretch out Davis’ defense.

“Those were huge,” Johnson said. “That opened things up inside a little and made them defend further out.”

Gipson took the first shot of the game, draining his first 3-pointer, and the Cadets never trailed.

“I knew Branden and Jack would get keyed on,” said Gipson, the steel-nerves kid who sank three free throws with no time left to force overtime in a game at Davis last season. “I thought I should try to assert at the beginning to make things a little easier on the guys inside.”

Chasing Eisenhower the entire game, Davis made two serious runs — a 7-0 burst at the start of the second quarter and another 7-0 shot early in the final period.

The latter surge got the Pirates within 42-37 with 5:35 remaining. But Johnson, who was scoreless in the third quarter, suddenly re-emerged with a seven-point flurry that extended Ike’s margin to 50-42 with three minutes to go.

“It was getting tight there and I was just trying to take what was there,” Johnson added. “I’m of these guys, the way we held on.”

Playing their fifth game in eight nights, Davis was a bit flat on offense with 35.7-percent shooting (20 of 56).

“Five games in eight days — you’ll get tired even if you are a little tough team,” said Davis coach Shag Williams. “We allowed them to get chances — a missed rebound here, a missed rebound there. That’s from being tired.”

Scoring ace Humberto Perez valiantly tried to carry his team, scoring 26 points on 10-for-24 shooting with eight rebounds. Nico Sandoval was Davis’ second-leading scorer with 10 points, including two late 3-pointers.

“We got down a little and figured we had to get back in a hurry,” Williams added. “We rushed and did things we usually don’t do. I figure we’ll be fresher next time.”

Sixth-ranked Eisenhower finished the first half of the Big Nine Conference at 9-1. The Cadets travel to Wenatchee next Friday.

Davis is directly behind Ike at 8-1 and will host Walla Walla on Friday.