Central Washington Class B Boys Basketball Playoffs

But the Tigers, who finished second the week before in the District 6 tournament, pulled away from the Cougars in the middle quarters.

Entiat outscored Lyle 21-14 in the second period to lead 35-22 at halftime. A decisive 14-5 third quarter gave them an insurmountable 49-27 advantage.

Albert Martinez scored a game-high 15 points to lead a trio of Entiat scorers in double figures.

Seniors Randy McMurrin and Chad Myers each had seven points to pace the Cougars, who were vying for their first state tournament berth since 1998.

Instead, the region's three berths to state went to Sunnyside Christian (22-1), Moses Lake's Day Star Christian (20-4) and La Salle of Union Gap (18-6).

District 5 champion Sunnyside defeated District 6 No. 1 Day Star, 85-71, in the regional championship game last Saturday.

La Salle, the District 5 runnerup, captured its first state tournament berth with a 36-26 victory over Entiat (21-5) in the winner-to-state regional consolation final, also on Saturday.

Feb. 20

At Goldendale High School

Lyle claimed a spot in the Central Washington Class B Boys Playoffs with a 61-49 victory over Trout Lake in the loser-out consolation final of the Yakima Valley District 5 Tournament.

The Cougars (11-11) stayed alive to face Entiat in a regional elimination-round game in Ellensburg on Saturday.

They were led in scoring by senior Randy McMurrin (13 points), junior Tyler Austin (12) and senior Chad Myers (11).

Trout Lake, which got a game-high 18 points from senior Ben Anderson, finished its season with a 10-13 record under Mustangs Coach Bob Jolley, who, prior to the start of district, announced he was stepping down after 12 years on the job.

Lyle set the tone for the outcome in the first quarter, staking itself to a 17-7 lead.

But Trout Lake closed the gap with a 9-0 run that began late in the opening period and carried over into the second.

The surge culminated with a line-drive 3-point basket by senior Dustin Poland that trimmed Lyle's 10-point margin to 17-16 midway through the second stanza.

The Cougars rebuilt their lead to 10 points, however, with a 15-6 run that junior Tyler Essex capped with a layin off a thread-the-needle feed from senior Ryan Johnson.

Poland answered with another 3-pointer that made it 32-25 at halftime.

Lyle again increased its bulge to 10 (46-36) at the end of three quarters. Its largest lead of the game -- 53-39 -- came with just over five minutes remaining in the final frame.