Knights rally, edge Moose boys; Colony girls get by Palmer

PALMER — There’s a reason UAA was quick to make Damien Fulp its first target during the recruiting season. Friday night, the UAA-bound Colony senior showed why.

Fulp scored a game-high 21 points and hit the go-ahead three-pointer from NBA range late in the fourth quarter to help the Knights notch a 53-50 come-from-behind victory over the Palmer Moose at Colony High.

Fulp, who scored 16 of his game-best 21 in the second half, hit a shot from beyond 22 feet with 45 seconds left in the fourth to give the Knights the 49-47 lead. Free throws down the stretch and a late Bailey West steal allowed Colony to clinch the win and improve to 8-2 in Northern Lights Conference play.

“Credit to Damien. We played him hard all night, and he hit a huge deep three,” Palmer head coach Brandon Blake said after the game. “Whether we got tired, whether it was a situation where you think he’s deep enough he’s not going to take that shot. He was four, five feet behind the line. The game plan in that time out (before the shot) is not to let Damien beat us. But he hit a great shot.”

Following the Fulp three, Colony hit four free throws during the final seconds to ice the game. But a pivotal play came on the defensive end. Clinging to the two-point lead, West managed to force a turnover as Palmer tried to inbound the ball. While West held the ball, Colony head coach Tom Berg was able to call the time out.

“Our defensive pressure at the end of the game was big. Bailey West’s steal at the end of the game, we really needed that one,” Fulp said. “Great trap in the corner by Antonio Bush and Bailey West. We just really stepped up our defense. We really needed that at the end of the game.”

The Fulp three and the West steal were pivotal moments, but Berg said he was happy with his team’s ability to come from behind and grind as a unit.

“They got out (ahead) a little bit, but we were able to reel it back in,” Berg said. “Four, five, six (points), you never want to be behind. But five is just two possessions. You’ve just got to grind it out, find those two possessions and make it count.”

Fulp, last season’s NLC Player of the Year, was held scoreless in the first quarter and to only one field goal in the second quarter.

“We were just missing shots, I was missing shots,” Fulp said. “(In the second half) we just let the game come to us.”

Fulp hit his first three-pointer of the game with six seconds left in the third to tie the game at 35. Colony didn’t take its first lead of the contest until Anton Chamblee knocked down a pair of free throws with 6:29 left in the fourth. That gave Colony the 37-36 advantage.

Sparked by Cody Wells, Palmer raced to an early 11-2 lead and led by nine points at two different points in the first half. The Moose led 29-24 at halftime and held that lead through the third quarter, until Fulp tied the game at 35.

“More than anything, I’m proud of the effort and the passion. At this point in the season, knowing where we are going to be seeded in regions, we had nothing to lose,” Blake said.

Wells supplied the offense early for Palmer, scoring 14 first-half points. He knocked down a pair of threes in the second quarter.

“Cody Wells came out with absolute passion defensively and offensively,” Blake said. “Absolutely outstanding.”

Blake also credited Jarad Yanez, who supplied a game-high 14 rebounds. He finished with six of Palmer’s 14 offensive boards.

“Unbelievable contribution from Jarred Yanez on the boards tonight,” Blake said.

Even after Colony took its first lead, Blake said he was thrilled to see Palmer battle right back. James Nisbett hit one of his two fourth-quarter three-pointers to give Palmer a 39-37 advantage. When Colony took a 42-39 lead, Palmer’s Brady Southwick hit a three-pointer to tie it at 42.

With 50 seconds left, Adam Christiansen went hard to the basket and gave Palmer the 47-46 advantage.

“We executed really well. Fourth quarter, we take the lead with 50 seconds left. Every time they made their run, their comeback, we responded,” Blake said.

Colony finished the regular season 8-2, and is assured at least the No. 2 seed in the NLC tourney.

“It feels great,” Fulp said of the win. “It’s good that we beat them tonight. It locks up that second seed for us too.”

Colony ended up with the No. 1 seed in the tournament, which starts Thursday at Colony High, thanks to Wasilla’s 65-60 win over Kodiak on Saturday. Kodiak and Wasilla finish the season tied at 7-3, but the Bears won the tiebreaker and the No. 2 seed in the tourney. Common 4A opponents outside the NLC was used to break the tie. East Anchorage was the common opponent. Kodiak edged East, but the T-Birds beat Wasilla during the regular season. After Colony’s win, Fulp said he’s not concerned with having the first seed versus a second seed.

“We’re not scared of any team in this conference. Going into regions we know we can beat anyone. We’re ready to play. We just want to play,” Fulp said.

Blake and the Moose already know where they are in the region tournament. Palmer will play Soldotna in the quarterfinals.

“We play focused like (tonight) and disciplined, and we can play with anyone,” Blake said. “We’ll be a tough match for anyone in the tournament.”

The winner of the Palmer-Soldotna game will meet Colony in the semifinals on Friday.

Junior leads Colony girls

PALMER — Junior Faith Farris scored nine of her game-high 19 points in the first quarter to lead Colony to a 51-32 win over the Palmer Moose Friday at Colony High School.

Farris had three early field goals and was 3 for 3 from the free throw line in the first quarter. She scored nine of her team’s 15 first-quarter points. Jennifer Solano was a perfect 8 for 8 from the free throw line, and added 16 points in the victory.

Kalei DePriest led the Moose with seven points in the loss. Elliot Perkins added six for Palmer.

Colony finished the regular season 6-4 in NLC play and will enter the upcoming tournament as the No. 3 seed. The Knights will play sixth-seeded Kenai in the first round. Soldotna (7-3) clinched the No. 2 seed with a 44-25 win over Kenai Saturday. SoHi will play the Colony-Kenai winner in the semifinals.

Kodiak (10-0) is the top seed. Wasilla and Palmer will play in the other girls quarterfinal.

Colony 53, Palmer 50

Friday, Colony High

Palmer 13-16-6-15—50

Colony 9-15-11-18—53

Palmer (50) — Ramoth 4 0-2 10, Southwick 1 0-0 3, Wells 5 2-4 14, Nisbett 4 5-6 16, Christiansen 1 0-0 2, Yanez 1 3-4 5; Totals: 16 10-16 50.

Colony (53) — Looney 0 1-2 1, West 3 3-4 9, Chamblee 0 0-2 2, Fulp 5 9-11 21, Dinkel 3 2-2 8, Nygard 2 0-0 6, Sonnenberg 1 0-0 2, Bush 2 0-0 4; Totals: 16 17-21 53.

3-point field goals: Palmer 8 (Nisbett 3), Colony 4 (Fulp 2); Total fouls: Palmer 15, Colony 16.

Colony girls 51, Palmer 32

Friday, Colony High

Palmer 8-6-9-9—32

Colony 18-14-6-16—51

Palmer (32) — King 2 0-1 4, Venzke 0 1-2 1, K. DePriest 2 3-4 7, Ledger 2 0-0 5, McCall 0 1-2 1, Perkins 3 0-2 6, Smylie 1 0-0 2, Sherman 1 0-0 2, L. DePriest 1 2-4 4; Totals: 12 7-15 32.

Colony (51) — Farris 8 3-4 12, Tweed 2 0-1 4, Clark 2 0-0 4, Brumbaugh 0 0-1 0, Kauffman 1 0-0 2, Solano 4 8-8 16, Bonn 2 2-2 6; Totals: 19 13-16 51.

3-point field goals: Palmer 1 (Ledger 1), Colony 0; Total fouls: Palmer 14, Colony 15.