Knights win Doc Larson Roundball Classic tip-off

WASILLA — The Colony Knights tipped off the Alaska high school basketball season with a 68-55 win over East Anchorage at the Doc Larson Roundball Classic at Wasilla High School on Wednesday night.

The game had the added pressure for Colony head coach Tom Berg, coaching against Chuck Martin, who was the coach at Colony while Berg played in high school. In the highly anticipated matchup between two of the top teams in the state heading into the season featuring two of the most talented players in The Last Frontier, the Knights trailed the Thunderbirds by one point after the first quarter of play.

Colony standout Patrick McMahon validated the offseason hype surrounding the phenomenal junior forward. With the score tied at 18, McMahon helped Colony take control of the game once and for all In the course of three possessions. McMahon flew through the air and took an alley-oop pass from Jeremiah Hersrud before slamming it home for his first dunk of the season, then on the next possession used a crafty euro-step to evade oncoming defenders and lay the ball in. McMahon finished his run by sinking a tough bucket off of a hesitation dribble. The Knights would not relinquish their lead past the second quarter, dominating the Thunderbirds 68-55 and making a statement with their first win of the season over one of the best teams in the state.

“By the end of last year he was a monster and we expect him to keep getting better,” said Berg of McMahon. “He wants to maximize himself, which is what you want to hear out of every kid. So I think you’ll see him even more active defensively this year, even more active with the ball in his hands, not just a catch and shoot guy, not just a guy around the basket. You’re going to see him handling, attacking, and making his teammates better.”

Colton Spencer has been playing with McMahon for three years, and called McMahon’s high-flying game a normal occurrence at this point. McMahon led all scorers with 21 points, eight rebounds, and added another dunk in the second half. Spencer chipped in 17 points, making four of his seven three-point shots. For a team that lost 2019 Gatorade Player of the Year Sullivan Menard to graduation and the DePaul University Blue Demons basketball team, the Knights do not appear to have taken a step back from their fourth-place finish in the state tournament last year.

“We’re coming for that ring this year. No doubt we’ve got a chip on our shoulder,” said Spencer.

The Knights have a core group of players that saw the majority of the playing time during last season with McMahon, Spencer, Hersrud, Wyatt Baker and newcomer Evan Gatton. Standing at 6-foot-4, the junior forward opened the season scoring for the Knights with a three-pointer from the corner. Gatton stayed perfect from beyond the arc during the game, contributing nine points by making all of his three-point shots.

“We’ve got a lot of new guys this year and I think they all contributed very well. Evan’s going to be huge. He’s another big body. I think he’ll help tremendously,” said Spencer.

The Knights started off in a full-court press on the Thunderbirds, and suffered the first blow of the game with Martin’s methodical offense working just the way he drew it up. Hasaan Harrington led the Thunderbirds with 20 points. Brayden Maldonado chipped in 12 points and Jaden Voliva was perfect from the field, making all of his four shots. Berg said that he hates having to coach against Martin, and that it is more impressive for Martin that one of his former players is now coaching against him, rather than Berg coaching against Martin.

“It’s not fun. I don’t like it. That’s the reason, there’s three or four people that are responsible for me being here and he’s certainly one of them,” said Berg.

Berg said that cheers for Martin’s teams, except when he has to coach against him, and noted that as one of the top teams in the state, the Knights are sure to match up against the T-Birds again later on this season. Berg told his team prior to tipoff that he felt like the team needed more practices, but the Knights were itching to get out on the court and prove themselves against elite competition. Berg and the Knights have been found at the DLRC each year, as the season tipoff packs the Wasilla High School gym with some of the best talent from around the state and beyond.

“Before Christmas I get a chance to see where we stack up. The journey’s a long ways away, but it’s still nice to go play really good quality basketball and then set that barometer,” said Berg.

While the Knights lost their best offensive creator and tough-shot maker in Menard, Berg says that experience and size are two of the teams strengths. Late in the second half, McMahon standing at 6-foot-6 and senior Wyatt Baker standing at 6-foot-4 patrolled around the free throw line, denying East the opportunity to drive to the basket for easy layups. Baker constantly found himself in the right place at the right time to pick up loose balls, rebounds, and score on wide-open baskets. Baker finished with nine points, eight rebounds, and a steal.

“He’s the quiet warrior. He’s the guy that makes the track and the train go on time,” said Berg. “We’re experienced. We played them when they were freshmen and sophomores. Having Colton, Shish[Hersrud] and Patty that can take care of the ball and do what you want to do, they’re making calls, Shish is making calls even before I make the call.”