Senior’s return sparks Wasilla boys on 1st day of state tourney

ANCHORAGE — Isaac Houck has spent the last month on the sideline. But Thursday, the Wasilla senior captain finally had a chance to return to the floor for the first time since injuring his hand during a nonconference victory over West Valley in late February.

And Houck came up big for his squad.

Houck scored 11 of his 15 points in the first half to lead Wasilla to a 64-46 win over Kodiak during the ASAA/First National Bank 4A State Basketball Championships boys semifinals at the Alaska Airlines Center in Anchorage.

“It feels really good, really nice to be back,” Houck said after the victory.

There’s still pain, Houck said, but not enough to keep him from helping his team make a run for the title game during the final weekend of his prep career.

“It hurts. But two more games. I think I can get through,” Houck said.

Houck’s play early helped the Warriors get through the first round, and bounce back from a quarterfinal loss in the state tournament a year ago.

“We’re moving in the right direction,” Wasilla head coach Ryan Engebretsen said. “After last year, this is huge for this group of kids.”

The Warriors also get another shot at the team that beat them in the first round last year, Ketchikan. The Warriors play the Kings Friday at 7 p.m. in the semifinals.

Houck helped Wasilla advance with 11 first-half points on 5 of 6 shooting. After not playing in about a month, Houck said was nervous to hit the floor. But that changed once he got back into the flow of the game.

“After I made the first shot the pressure kind of went away,” Houck said.

Engebretsen said he was excited to see Houck’s impact early, but that wasn’t the total focus entering the game.

“It wasn’t necessarily the game plan. The guys bought into how hard he’s been working to get back. The guys got the ball in his hands and gave him confidence,” Engebretsen said.

Engebretsen said the other players on the floor fed off Houck’s energy. Kobe Brown added seven of his game-high 18 in the first half, and Wasilla shot 65 percent in the first half. Brown also hit a pair of threes in the win and grabbed three of Wasilla’s nine steals. Aeron Milliron scored 12. Reilly Devine and Levi Houck added six each.

Daniel Headdings led Wasilla with a game-best 12 rebounds.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com

Wasilla 64, Kodiak 46

4A boys quarterfinals

Wasilla 20-12-16-16—64

Kodiak 8-12-12-14—46

Wasilla (64) — L. Houck 3 0-0 6, Brown 6 4-5 18, Headdings 1 1-4 3, R. Devine 2 2-2 6, Fife 2 0-2 4, I. Houck 5 5-10 15, Milliron 3 4-6 12; Totals: 22 16-31 64.

Kodiak (46) — Basuel 2 0-0 6, Rocheleau 2 1-3 5, Morzo 0 1-2 1, Cauging 5 3-6 17, Parnell 0 1-2 3, Osowski 4 1-2 9, Giron 1 1-3 3, Koller 1 0-0 2; Totals: 16 7-16 46.

3-point field goals: Wasilla 4 (Brown, Milliron 2), Kodiak 7 (Cauging 4); Total fouls: Wasilla 14, Kodiak 20.