BY GERARDO BOLONG
Contributing Writer

TACOMA - The firm of Mancol and Royster concluded an excellent case for John F. Kennedy Catholic in a 53-35 first round destruction of Glacier Peak contested in a Wed., March 1, win of a first round game at the 2017 4A boys basketball Hardwood Classic held in the Tacoma Dome.

"We well with good rebounding and shut down their main scorers," said KC head coach Don Hoffman.
Lancer quickness led by Emilio Mancol's opening game 3-pointer added to a layup and free throw conversion accounted for nine of the KC 13 points as part of a 13-6 advantage over the Grizzlies after one quarter.

"We just played scrappy and gritty with great motivation," he said. "We took what was available and went with the team's offense. The shots were there and my teammates found me. I really good a good rhythm."
Mancols's rhythm led to 16 game points.

Glacier Peak switched from a man-to-man defense into a 1-2-2 half court trap that cleared out spacing for clear shots from beyond the 3-point arc. Jared Thurber and Royster singed the net for consecutive treys to balloon the Lancer command to 23-10 near the end of the first half.

Continuing their quick passing, quick strike offense, the Lancers from Burien maintained double digit leads of up to 12 points throughout the third quarter. GP closed within 10 points twice- the last at 35-25 - until Mancol torched a corner 3-pointer for a 38-25 Lancer lead going into the fourth quarter.

Bobby Martin's 3-pointer followed by an Austin Petz steal and lay in brought the Grizzlies within 38-30 with 86 seconds elapsed time in the final quarter, but at this point Royster completely capped Glacier Peak by scored eight points of an 11-0 KC surge.

Thurber stopped the Grizzly momentum with a 3-pointer to clear the podium for the Keanu Royster statement. It originated with a Royster converting downing two sets of charity tosses before he drove to the basket for a lay up and closed off his eight point binge by accepting a nice alley-oop pass from Thurber and converting another lay in on his way to a game total of 13 points with an added benefit of four steals.

"Fourth quarter is the most important quarter," Royster said. "I had a mismatch and took it. Our teammates just fed off each other."

Coach Hoffman attested to the attributes of the five-foot, inch athletic seniors Mancol and Royster.
"Keannu has been a four-year starter, he's seasoned," concluded Hoffman. "Emilio came in as a sophomore and has started since then. We feed off them an d they make the other players better."

For the Lancers, Thurber finished with 10 rebounds and six points. Matthew Sasonoff added 10 points.
Martin was a powerful presence for Glacier Peak while scoring 12 points and grabbing six rebounds.